60 Pounds Gone and I've Been Busy

Just when I was getting down about hitting yet another plateau, I hit the scale dry and unpainted this morning for Tuesday Weigh Day, and found I'd crossed the 60-pound loss mark. While I'm happy to have peeled off a couple more pounds, I'm so grateful for life and my loved ones.

The remnants of two mobile homes pulverized in Woodward.

I've been busy the past few days and it's not going to let up this week. Sunday morning, I got a call from a major New York newspaper asking if I'd string for them in Woodward, Okla., where they had severe tornado damage overnight. It was about a three-hour drive, and I was out the door in about 45 minutes -- laptop, iPad, iPhone, tape recorder and notepad in hand.

Here's a pic I snapped with my iPhone of some of the worst damage at Woodward's Hideaway Mobile Home Park. (I did have a professional photographer with me, and his pictures are more riveting than this.) This is the pulverized remnants of two mobile homes, and I'm posting it for my friends who live in mobile homes. Please, PLEASE don't ever try to shelter during a tornado warning in a mobile home. It just isn't worth it. As you can see, there is a heap where one home was. The other one is on top of another heap two homes to the left of my snapshot. All six fatalities occurred in this park, where the sirens didn't go off because apparently the tornado had already knocked out the power. I'd also urge my friends to go out and get a battery-operated weather radio, which might have saved some of these lives.

There are also many stories of survival in this mobile home park, set on top of a beautiful hill looking out over verdant (for now) green pastures. An 18-year-old girl, eight-months pregnant, was found under the rubble of another home, rushed to the hospital and now she and her baby are doing fine.

Off to master gardener class for me, but life is good and we are all lucky to have this day.

Onward,
Carol





 

Magnificent Morels and Making a Goal

Morel mushrooms

Fresh and fabulous morel mushrooms are in season for just a couple of weeks a year, and my hubby and I were driving by the Earth organic food store and there was their little chalkboard out by the street with fresh morels scrawled on it. We made it a point to go back and get some.

Morels are expensive, but worth it -- and particularly good with beef. Hubby picked up a couple of ribeyes to throw on the barbee and we were good to go. I sauteed up the morels in a bit of olive oil, red wine and garlic and we served them on the side along with mashed cauliflower. Another hubby-seal-of-approval for the morels. Always good news.

Here's a great website on how to clean them along with a couple of recipes, mushroom-appreciation.com. 

I had a sub-goal of getting down to 215 by Easter and made it a day early, so I'm finally off my horrid three-week plateau. So that's 41 pounds off since my gastric sleeve surgery Dec. 27, 2011, and about 58 total since my all-time high weight of 273.

Morels in garlic, olive oil and red wine reduction

Had a great 3 month checkup with Dr. Gregory Walton's office WeightWise. Was so fun to see everybody and for them to see the new and improved me. I'm thinking watching their patients get healthier has to be a whole lot of fun. Great job if you can get it.