My current weight loss plan

(and while the first is a little tongue in cheek (no pun intended), it does seem to be helping).

The partials (at least for now) mean:
1. 1. I oddly don't want my normal diet soda. I drank a half of one all day at work and a whole one I discovered at home. That's quite a bit less than normal. Nor am I big on anything but water, and even that I have to think to drink. Not sure why this is the case.
   2. I have to eat small bites, slowly.
   3. I can only eat certain foods right now, mostly soft and manageable.
2. Also, I was put on Byetta, which works by shrinking the stomach prior to meals. I take 5 mcg before breakfast and dinner, and I've noticed that as a general rule, I'm less hungry throughout the day. I'm eating differently than the big three meals, but rather a little bit every few hours or so, which is better for blood sugar.
3. My endocrinologist wants me to try to start watching carbs and sent me a booklet on carbohydrate counting along with how to figure how many to eat at meals and throughout the day. I'm going through this to see if I can get a good grip on doing this, and am going to put it into practice. I have 20 lbs to lose by the next appointment, if possible, or at least get a good start on it. That's at the end of May, so about 12 weeks. I had lost 10 lbs last time and she had suggested another 20 to get my sensitivity to insulin working better (the total 30, would be about 10% of my original body weight).

This is excellent

And a major frustration for those of us with history degrees. That and movies that are based on historical events with CGI and monsters. YKWIA was telling me the other day about how he had to explain to someone that the Persians did not have monsters with them at the Battle of Thermopylae like in the comic and movie, The 300. I think his friend was disappointed.

Sorry, I'm not having much luck finding the original source for attribution. Granted, I haven't spent days looking, just a Google search for about a half hour. It appears to be signed 'Loeb', and definitely looks like an editorial cartoon, or perhaps something from a magazine like The New Yorker. I found it making the rounds on Facebook, and it's on lot of different political websites, the earliest of which seems to be November 2012. My apologies to the cartoonist--if I can find the source, I'll attribute correctly.

What a day

I got to work by bus today because of the roads and the fact that I couldn't get into my car due to the ice, which fortunately wasn't as bad as they originally thought it would be. Still, ice and sleet under five inches of snow was not fun, and my bus stop is a quarter of a mile away and I have to cross a major road twice. One of my co-workers got me home, though, which was very nice. It was my first day at work with my partials in, and I still sound funny, and eating was a challenge in public. I had to excuse myself completely when a bit of roll became a problem and my lower ones popped out. I'm not supposed to use fixative on the lower ones for a bit until that one area where they pulled my tooth heals. All in all I came home and just crashed, so of course now it's 11 pm and I'm up.

Somehow

while flipping through channels during a check on current weather conditions, I caught part of Idina Menzel's performance of 'Let It Go' (which apparently won), and then caught the tail-end of the Oscars from Best Director onward. I am very glad that Twelve Years a Slave won for Best Picture, and that the director brought the audience's attention not only to those who suffered slavery in the past, but also those who are enduring it right now.

The wind is howling and it is sleeting. The cars are covered in ice, but it's not as thick as it could have been. Ice pellets cover the ground and streets, and we're heading into snow, which is expected to last until about noon tomorrow. So we could have some fairly significant snow. I'm going to try to get up early to deal with whatever mess the roads may be in then. Also, today I had trouble trying to get my partials seated correctly and so I want to have plenty of time to do so tomorrow morning. YKWIA couldn't understand a word I said on the phone this morning when he called, for example, and I was in a hurry to get over there and just forewent the partials altogether. But although that's fine occasionally, you can't do that regularly since it's bad for the gums and general oral health.

I think I'm going to head on to bed. I have a bad headache, and I'm achy all over, so I'm going to take some ibuprofen. My eyes and nose are going pretty badly, too, and my throat hurts. Generally, I just don't feel great at all. I'm not sure if I have A's cold, or if it's just allergies, but it's annoying. Maybe it's time to go back on Claritin. Hope you had a good weekend, and that you all have power and are staying warm. Be careful if you're in this storm's path. Good night.

I think YKWIA is a bit disappointed

because I came home at 2 pm or so because the mixed precipitation was supposed to start at 3, but in actuality we got a break in precipitation and I could have stayed to watch The City of Ember, which we have out from Netflix. But I didn't want to wait until the ice came, obviously, so better to be overly-prudent, I suppose. The ice is finally starting, as the rain started back up a couple of hours ago and I think it's gone to freezing rain now. We'll see how bad it gets, but I'm thinking it won't be quite as bad as originally forecast. Still, if it's fairly slow-moving, then we have quite a few hours between now and tomorrow's commute for things to get dicey. We'll see. But I'm home, I'm warm, I'm somewhat rested (I charged my phone and napped at the same time). I've been cleaning house a bit and I'm about to run the dishwasher, and then see what I can do after that. I'm not really into watching the Academy Awards (I just look at the news later--I have no patience for all the pomp and circumstance). I would like to see Idina Menzel sing 'Let It Go' and maybe watch towards the end when the big categories get announced, but again, not sure when the best time to tune in would be, and I don't care for awards shows. I was surprised A wasn't going to watch, since he loves classic and great movies so much, but apparently he hasn't forgiven them for snubbing 'The Color Purple' in 1986 and still won't watch.

'That's not how it works. That's not how any of this works.'

I feel like the lady in the Beatrice esurance commercial who is incredulous at the non-techie Beatrice sharing things to her wall. YKWIA showed me the commercial, instantly recognising similarities between the two of us. And yes, he would be Beatrice. If he every shared info, even 'offline'. :) That said, he's become quite adept at finding things online and doing various things like watching videos, etc., all stemming from a moment I sat him down and showed him how to play solitaire on the computer. Don't ever undervalue the power of good old solitaire games for getting someone comfortable with the computer. Insidious, yes, but it does work.

Lovely

From the National Weather Service:
Sent: 14:14 EST on 03-01-2014
Effective: 14:14 EST on 03-01-2014
Expires: 13:00 EST on 03-03-2014

Event: Winter Storm Warning

Alert: ...WINTER STORM TO AFFECT PORTIONS OF THE OHIO VALLEY SUNDAY AND MONDAY......WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM EST /9 AM CST/ SUNDAY TO 1 PM EST /NOON CST/ MONDAY...

* TIMING: MID-MORNING SUNDAY THROUGH MID-DAY MONDAY.

* MAIN IMPACT: THREE TO SIX INCHES OF SNOW AND SLEET ALONG WITH A QUARTER TO THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION IS EXPECTED. TRAVEL WILL BECOME TREACHEROUS AT TIMES. TREE DAMAGE AND POWER OUTAGES ARE LIKELY.

* OTHER IMPACTS: GUSTY NORTHERLY WINDS OF UP TO 30 MPH SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY MAY CAUSE BLOWING SNOW AND WORSEN TREE DAMAGE.

Instructions: TRAVEL WILL BE TREACHEROUS WITH SOME ROADS NEARLY IMPASSABLE. HAVE AN EMERGENCY KIT OF BLANKETS...FOOD...WATER AND FLASHLIGHTS IF YOU MUST TRAVEL. POWER OUTAGES ARE LIKELY.

Target Area: Anderson, Bourbon, Breckinridge, Bullitt, Butler, Clark, Edmonson, Fayette, Franklin, Grayson, Hancock, Hardin, Harrison, Hart, Henry, Jefferson, Jessamine, Larue, Marion, Meade, Mercer, Nelson. Nicholas, Ohio, Oldham, Shelby, Spencer, Washington, Woodford

Forecast Office: NWS Louisville (Central Kentucky)

Keep safe out there. I'm mostly prepared, although I need to go out tomorrow morning for toilet paper just in case. We've cancelled the game so Brenda and I won't be trying to make it home in freezing rain. Monday's commute should be positively wonderful. And mind you, today was in the 50s. Temperatures are expected to plummet to lows in the single digits and highs in the 20s. Not fun. They're already reaching out to the homeless to get them in during the cold, and doing what they can with the roads, although with the rain coming first, that means pre-treating is practically useless, I think. I hope this is winter's last hurrah.

My precious....

I slept from about 5 pm to 8 pm, woke up, and went and retrieved my precious...um...my phone. It's happily charging now. I've eaten something and feel a little better, although my nose is pretty sniffly. The headache that was hitting me most of the day has abated to a dull ache. I blame the coming weather for the headache. I'm still not sure if I'm coming down with a cold or not. But I am achy and tired, despite getting rest. I don't seem to be running a fever, at least--just feel kind of run down. Bleh. I think I may go into the other room and try to read for a bit, or at least listen to some music.

Time for a nap

Today I haven't felt great, and I may be getting a friend's cold, but I've taken him to the grocery and helped him wash his dog, and now I'm pooped. Turns out I also left my cell phone over at his house, so I'll go back and get that later this evening, but for now, I'm going to nap. I've done what I can to prepare for our potential ice storm tomorrow night and we've cancelled the game. I picked up my Lantus, which I was almost out of, and even picked up a couple of 'touch lights' that are battery-powered in case the lights go out, because even though I have a box of 100 tea lights, those are iffy in terms of safety. I have a crank flashlight/radio as well as some other flashlights, and food that can be eaten without being cooked. Let's hope it isn't bad, but hey, if it is, I'm hopefully ready. At least once I get my phone back.

Today I was off from work, and I:

1. Went over to the endocrinologist very early, and she took me off the oral medication Invokana and on the injectable Byetta, as my Ha1C went up and I was having some unpleasant side effects in the form of recurrent yeast infections.
2. Grabbed a quick bite between appointments.
3. Went to the dentist, who very quickly took out that little tooth that had been under the crown which had come off, and he put my new partials in.
4. Amused a friend with my attempts to talk with the partials in, although he did point out that I improved somewhat as the day went on.
5. Took a nap.
6. Watched both the 'Grimm' from before the Olympics (where you meet Monroe's parents) over at my house and then tonight's 'Grimm' with YKWIA over at his house. Scary serial killers.
7. Watched a couple of episodes of the cartoon 'Dan vs.' with YKIWA.
8. Came home, took out the partials (yay!) and brushed them with a soft toothbrush. The wires get a bit gummy with stuff. But I did figure out how to get them out; now I just have to figure out how to get them back in.
9. Ate a bit without the partials as I'm a little more comfortable with that right now, although I was doing better as the day went by with them in.
10. Checked Facebook, this blog, and now I'm going to head to bed soon. I'm very tired after a long day of doctor's appointments and trying to adjust to these things in my mouth.
11. I do need to leave my libation for Hekate tonight, as well.