Still Working Toward My Goal

I finished my 8 week challenge and lost 9 lbs. Now I am back where I was Sept 2009. I am not giving up on this quest! I will continue to work towards my goal! Let me know if any of you are still working on your quests.

Progress

Well, I had my 2 week weigh-in. I actually lost 5.9 lbs!! I was shocked! I guess eating more calories than I have been was not a bad thing. I've been reading about how to get my metabolism going and eating more is suppose to be the answer. Maybe they know what they are talking about! I will wait till the end of this 8 week commitment to make a judgement.

A New Year Again!

Well, here I am at another New Year and I still haven't reached my weight goal! Okay, I am trying something else. My gym has started an 8 week Biggest Loser Challenge! I started yesterday. I had the opportunity to get help from a nutritionist and a trainer (for an additional fee). It is a bargain rate for 4 sessions from each of them. I got them to agree to stagger my sessions so I will meet with the nutritionist every other week and the same with the trainer. That way I can stretch their support out over the whole 8 weeks. There is a cash prize for the winner ($1000.) but I don't really expect to win. I do hope to get back on track and maybe learn more about how to use food to my body's best advantage. The analysis said I should be eating 1778 calories a day to support my exercise regime.

I also spent my Christmas $ to help buy myself a new bicycle. I hope to do a lot more biking as soon as spring comes and this snow disappears!

I hope all of you that are still reading this are able to stay on track with your goals.

November 27, 2009
Dear Family and Friends,

Last January I co-led a program at Theresians based on The Cup of Our Life by Joyce Rupp. It was a lesson based on the "shadow" of your cup. I learned that we all have shadows within us that are our God-given potentials that are meant to be developed. I explored this idea through reading numerous books on the topic of the shadow, Jung’s psychological theory about the two sides of our personas. Through this process, I began thinking about what hidden sides I had in me that might need to surface in retirement, and the first one to emerge was my musical self.

I returned to the choir at First Presbyterian Church just in time to be invited to Mo Ranch last summer. I had attended the Worship and Music Conference three years ago, but this time was different. My shadow was ready to emerge. I planned and executed singing "Over the Rainbow" at the talent show in June. I sang it through twice, once sweetly and once very jazzy. I didn’t falter, and the pianist who accompanied me was excellent in following my lead. I felt like a performer that night and wondered what door God would open next.

In August I attended a workshop on Language and the Pursuit of Happiness, and the young man who sat next to me started talking about trying out for the beast in "Beauty and the Beast," an ACTS Theatre production that was about to start. He told me that I’d be a perfect Mrs. Potts, and, although I didn’t get that part, I got up the courage to sing "Over the Rainbow" a capella for the audition, and I committed to almost three months of rehearsals and 11 performances that ended on November 15th. I was a hat seller and a "plate"--singing and dancing and acting on a stage at age 58. My musical shadow had definitely emerged.

If you know the music of that show, there’s a song about being "human again." There’s a line that says, "I’ll be cookin’ again, be good lookin’ again…" Somehow through the experience of being in this play, I feel these things happening, too. More shadow is coming out. Not only am I singing again but I’m cooking again, and my hair kept getting shorter throughout the three months of commitment. I feel "good lookin’ again. I feel like I’ve gotten over some hurdle and I’m fully human again. Vitality has returned to my days. My rental business is going well. It’s a ministry, and I feel God’s presence in all that I do. I’m also reading literature again. I especially love short stories, and recently I tackled Dostoevsky’s The Idiot.

My house has been changing in the last three months. I’ve added plants, stained glass, and new light fixtures. Yesterday I cooked a meal that Julia Child would have been proud of. I outdid myself with Gerwurtztraminer Chicken with Grapes and four other complex dishes from the Fine Cooking magazine. Jigsawing it altogether reminded me of my cooking in Cairo 25 years ago. I don’t think I’ve cooked like this since then. It feels good. I feel good, and I’m wondering what other shadows will emerge in the new year. I heard about an International cooking class at Sowela Tech this coming spring, and I plan to be there. My family has planned a destination holiday this year to Fredricksburg, Texas. We leave December 27th. This is my life story in progress… I’ll let you know next year what comes next. Please let me know how you’re doing, too. Many blessings in the coming year…

Love and peace from Linda Gardner

Still Struggling

I have been struggling since I had to stop taking my supplements. I get my blood rechecked on Oct. 22. I hope I can return to taking at least my multivitamin. I have maintained my workout schedule but have not lost any more weight. I have gained about 3. I hope it is all water weight and I can get it flushed out soon!

Wish Me Luck

Yikes!! I had 3 meals out last week, lunch out today, dinner out Tuesday, and lunch out on Friday!!! I am going to need all the prayers I can get to make good choices this week and next!!

New Endeavors

I met my sister Debbie and our niece Hannah in Beaumont today. We enjoyed a nutritious and delicious meal at Pappadeaux's. I've added a singing and dancing routine to my days. It seems to helping with reducing my belly fat. I'm toning up and enjoying the sensation of well-being that comes from this kind of uplifting endeavor. I'm also opening another door. On Monday night, wish me well when I audition to be in Beauty and the Beast at ACTS Theater here in Lake Charles. I've been studying the shadow, and I believe one shadow in me is my potential and love of singing. It's coming out, and as it does, my desire to eat too much is diminishing. There must be a relationship. Please wish me well.... Til later, Linda