The Lost Entries

Apologies to all two of my readers. I'm new to blogging and accidently lost whole blog. Fortunately I kept a copy, minus the mysterious disappearance of day seven. Here are the Missing entries leading up to my vacation.

Day Six and Tips From a Friend


Queen Latifiah announced she’s going on Jenny Craig. I feel betrayed. It’s irrational I know, but I feel the Queen should be with me. She’s sold out to pre-packaged food. Yes, it’s convenient. Yes, it can work, (see Kirsty and Valerie), but for God’s sake… Yuck! We’re talking about quality of life. And the Queen..? I really believed she’s so cool and beautiful and talented that she’d never be beaten into submission to eat that kind of food. If only she’d join the Writer’s strike diet instead. Picket with us…. Take extra water and take vitamins. Or my new addition for the day… grapefruit. My middle daughter says if you eat a half a grapefruit everyday you lose weight no matter what. From her mouth to God’s ears. A couple of grapefruit literally fell onto my property yesterday. Bless you Southern California… it’s one of the small reasons we live here, despite…. Well despite everything else.

Anyway, if that’s not a sign I don’t know what is. It’s been a week and I should probably have weighed myself this morning. But I want to wait one more day, I haven’t had a chance to eat a grapefruit yet, and plan to. Also last night I had to bake cookies for teachers. I refuse to compete against the multitudes of overly monied folk who give every teacher something they picked up at Neiman Marcas…

Anyway… the cookies were okay (should have been better considering I followed the recipe on the back of the Toll House bag_)… I had to test them, it would have been wrong not too.

I had a healthy dinner of Chicken, mashed potatoes and salad and red wine and if the cookie hadn’t happened it would have been a great day. Lunch was a greek wrap from Trader Joes. Tasteless but nutritious.

Back to the Queen… she should be on lines anyway! SAG solidarity! Picketing and dieting with us… Where are all the movie stars? The TV stars have been great they know who their writers are and they’ve been on the lines, but the movie stars have been weirdly absent. I know if Will Smith would just come out right now, while he’s a LEGEND and just tell the studios, he’s pissed off and thinking of honoring the lines --- boom… we’re back to work. Studios love their movie stars… Will Smith… Come help us. He’s saved the world countless times. Once for the writers! Bring your buddy Tom Cruise.

It’s my theory the reason the movie stars haven’t been as supportive as the TV stars, is that movies stars don’t know their writers personally they way they do in TV. Movies, with those rare and glorious exceptions are usually written, then re-written. The writer is fired, sometimes re-hired… then fired again. By the time the actor gets to the set, the writer either isn’t welcome, or too pissed off to be there too, or so busy with arbitration fighting over credit there is no time for hobnobbing… Not that many want to hob nob with the writer… There are, of course, glorious exceptions -- Paul Haggis… And writer directors who don’t fire themselves – Judd Apatow. These movies are always the best -- one vision seen to completion.

Anyway, we need the movie stars. I need the Queen. More tips have been coming. Suze who’s a size negative one I think, says:



ALSO ADDED DEEDIE’S RICOTTA RECIPE


YESTERDAY’S FOOD.

Breakfast: cookies (3ish)
Whole grapefruit sprinkled with sugar
Ooh long tea
Snack… black tea with 1% milk

Lunch: Spicey Salmon roll
Two cookies

Snack: cheddar popcorn, diet coke,
More tea

Dinner: Risotto and salad with ranch dressing

Dessert: Tea with milk
Two and a half cookies


Four glasses of water vitamins

Exercise… Fifteen minute walk


MORNING DAY EIGHT

It’s a Hannukah miracle (two weeks late) I lost two pounds. I really did. At least that’s what it looks like on my pathetic scale. I knew it! I knew this diet had substance. Time to review. Added water. Not the eight glasses you’re supposed to, but by the end four –five glasses. Added vitamins. Specifically, one multi vitamin and one omega three every morning. And two fiber pills – called Colon Fit every night. I’d seen a show on PBS with a woman named Brenda Watson who said that all ailments and problems with health and well being can be solved by a healthy colon. The night time pills say “as recommended by Brenda Watson”. I’m supposed to also take a pro –biotic, and will try and add that in this week. I bought them and lost them. Will try harder!

Also the tea. I only had the tea in the morning and the tea says you’re supposed to have it twice a day. Maybe this week I’ll have the tea twice a day and throw in the pro-biotic. I also didn’t do enough exercise… If I up my exercise from ten to fifteen minutes to a whole half hour (and then increase again when picketing resumes) honestly, I really think this could work.

Or… I’ve just lost a little water weight and next week I’ll be the same. NO! POSITIVE! I forgot I added in affirmations.

The diet is working
I lose weight so easily
I am thinner every ding dong day
This is not my imagination
I am grateful for losing two more pounds next week despite it being Christmas and me going to Santa Fe to eat Christmas foods and drink egg nog

Yeah… I will lose weight over Christmas
And I’m grateful for that
And world peace of course!


Good morning. Yesterday’s food :

Breakfast: Cereal, Banana vitamins water, tea

Lunch: In and Out hamburger, chocolate shake, (some fries – not whole thing) I got cocky

Dinner: Spaghetti with red sauce, Parmesan, little salad and red wine. No dessert. ( to make up for cocky)

Exercise: About five minutes on my stepper. A pathetic amount except that the stepper is much harder than walking.

Also: I went Christmas shopping which was a lot of exercise and pure torture. Had to park far away and carry heavy bags and walk through crowded mall… if not exercise I don’t know what is.


Tis the season to be jolly… fa la la la la…

Day Nine

Okay… so I got a little off track yesterday, but a couple of things.

One. I went to my daughter’s school holiday concert and they managed to completely eliminate, not only Christmas, but all holidays… they didn’t even sing a Hanukah, Kwansaka number… It was some sort of ode to African, Latin drumming and love songs. I was so disappointed. I was finally going to get in the holiday spirit and hear some carols and I got bupkis.

Political correctness is going to be the downfall of our society. It’s gotten absurd and no one says anything. Help….

Anyway… that’s more or less how I ended up at In and Out burger having a chocolate shake. To recover from the downfall of civilization. Dieting can be tough, when you have those, “what’s the point we’re all going to hell in a hand basket moments”.

Two. I managed to avoid cookies… although I just remembered a candy cane I didn’t report. Overall, I was a little cocky from the two pounds and didn’t do enough fruits and vegetables, so I’m over that today and starting with a grapefruit for breakfast with the cereal and banana. Two fruits over with immediately and then just have to focus on veggies etc.

I am grateful for Christmas
I am grateful society isn’t going to hell in a hand basket
I am grateful for my diet
I am grateful for my children
Thank you that they love their presents that I bought and don’t complain that it’s mostly clothes
Thank you for smiling faces on Christmas morning after I remind them, we’re on strike and they’re Jewish
(my husband and kids are Jewish and I’m 100% supportive except for I like a little Christmas. Besides Hanukah this year was kind of bust, as it came quickly and we forgot to by gifts, so everyone’s counting on Christmas)







Yesterday was Saturday and vacation is upon us. After my usual Raisin Bran/Banana breakfast I went to a friend’s house to play Balderdash and Celebrity and we ate cheese and crackers and veggie platters and a couple of scones for lunch. There was some extraneous grazing involved but I didn’t feel too bad about it. Drank diet cokes in lieu of punch – I don’t like punch anyway, so no sacrifice there, then had a shrimp sushi roll, red wine and butter cookies for dinner/dessert.

All in all, not bad.

Today – same breakfast, CPK chopped salad for lunch, a few minor snacks, a lollipop and other discarded foods from my two year old. Dinner is as yet to be determined.

I’m too tired for exercise today… I chased my son everywhere instead.

A Random Thought

The Writer and Food

Come to think of it, my weight really could be blamed on my career choice. A writer’s relationship with food is doomed to be a tough. Most of us work at home. All day walking to and from desk to refrigerator… what hope do mere humans have of not eating during the eight straight hours we’re supposed to be in the chair.

And there’s all that thinking and pacing that’s much more effective with chocolate in the mouth and chips at the ready.

When we try to get out of house… for a change of scenery or escape the children or noise or chores… we generally end up in a Starbucks, where we load up on lattes with too much milk and cream and if you’re weak like me, a latte only lasts so long and eventually it’s back to the counter for a donut, slice of lemon cake or scone.

Even writers who get to go to the office (ie… a writers room on a show… are usually met with an array of donuts, Kraft services or people who order in large lunches. Food is inescapable. And this doesn’t just apply to the writer… it’s also the mother… home all day, cleaning the kitchen, sticking food in the mouth as the plate lands in the dishwasher.


Anyone with a home office knows the pain of grazing all day… I envy those busy souls who are lucky if they barely have time to grab a sandwich in between their heavy labors.