Carolyn

So, my sister and I have decided to do this program called Whole 30. This is paleo-rooted, she found it first on Reddit, and after reading in depth about it, I decided this would definitely be a good thing to do. I am sick of the pain in my foot, I am tired of being tired, I am worn out by the deep moods that I can't/won't talk to anyone about, etc. etc. etc. Reading about the way what we eat can (and does) affect how we feel, well, makes sense. I've not felt myself lately. At all. Sure sure during work I am awesome, super-power Cee, but outside of work? I am not feeling at all tiptop. A lot of things have been bothering me lately, things I can't change (such as growing older, for instance, my kids being gone, not being needed like I used to be and I am SO a person who likes being needed). I feel very closed in and unknown. But other things I know I can change. But how? How? How how how???? Well the first and easiest way is making a lifestyle change - and I basically have done this in the past and was very successful so yeah. It is time.

I feel out of control. I hate that. I can't do it anymore, not if I can change things and maybe put an end to some of the stuff what needs letting go. Recently, I've seen my daughter strip all the crap out of her life and she has lost over 35 pounds. I am stunned and so happy and amazed. She did it by eating completely whole foods, no grains, though she is vegan (a vegan who eats eggs). She is amazing. I am so proud of her, so glad she has found what she needs to feel better about herself, etc. Well I can't be Vegan but Whole 30 I can do. :)

( So tell me more about Whole 30, Cee! )

So what is Whole 30? It is 30 days of eating clean. That is no sugar, no starches (except sweet taters), no legumes, no white potatoes, no flour, no artificial sweeteners, no dairy... And most importantly, I suspect (for me), no grains. No bread. No pasta, etc.

This is the website, which explains it better: Whole 30

So this is what I am eating now, for the next 30 days!

Vegetables (except corn), all meats (bacon, etc. must be nitrate free), nuts, vegetables, coconut oil, butter in the form of ghee (making it tomorrow!). Coconut milk is a big part of it too... Can have coffee, tea, no sweetener though. Fruit, wonderful fruit! Important emphasis on good fats, and a high percentage of that. EDIT: AND OLIVE OIL! All the olives! Nom nom nom.

This girl does NOT believe in low fat. At all. Lies, ALL LIES.

To prepare for this I got a box, put in it all those things that were not refrigerated, and threw away the rest. Everything. ALL of it. EVERYTHING BAD AND HURTFUL is GONE.

So anyway! Today was the first day and I figure what I should do is write about what I am doing, how I'm feeling, etc. We'll see how it goes. I started the day by weighing (meep - need to lose 15 or even 20) and measuring (double-meep), and put my scale and the tape measure away for the next month. Then I made myself some tea, and drank it without sweetener.

Breakfast: 3 eggs cooked with ghee (ever tried ghee? it is another name for clarified butter - clarification removes the dairy for the most part) and spinach. Really filling whereas eating 2 eggs cooked with nothing leaves me starving.

Lunch: No nitrate hot dog. This sucker was HUGE!!! LOL. It looked like a big.... never mind. Frozen grapes, and a small salad.

I was out of coffee and nothing will do for coffee during this except for Avoca Coffee, a local roaster. So I went and got two bags of their best and ordered a coffee black and plain. At home I can put coconut cream in it (get a can of coconut milk from the Asian foods section, not the lite or low fat, (remember I do not believe in low fat) and put it in the fridge. The cream will rise to the top and can be scooped into the coffee. I can't wait to try it tomorrow!

Snack because Dinner was taking FOREVER: a handful of salt-free nuts

Dinner: lime chicken and a sweet potato (um, was supposed to have green stuff but I was so FULL). The chicken was marinated in a combo of lime, lime zest, cilantro and coconut oil. SO GOOD!!!! The sweet tater had butter on it (plain butter is not supposed to be eaten but I need to make the ghee - you make it with unsalted, high quality butter). This was a garnet sweet potato but I do prefer regular ones.

I have no idea how many calories and I am not caring. Am feeling good, not hungry at all. Today was easy but it was the first day. Even drinking tea and coffee without sweetener was okay. Oh and no sodas either BUT there is a marvelous brand of seltzer water that is flavor without sweeteners - grapefruit, plain and my favorite, coconut flavor!

Oh and technically one is supposed to eat three meals a day. Nothing inbetween. I do like that because those who say 'eat every 2-3 hours'? No can do, not with my work. And I am fine with that.

So let's see if this helps. Let's see if I feel better without all the crap, the grains, the processed foods, etc. Let's see if the stabs of agonizing pain stop, I sleep without needing Tylenol PM, if my mood lightens, I feel like getting out and being with people (which I don't right now, honestly...not good company imo), etc. etc. etc.

Tomorrow if it isn't raining, going to hook up the sled dogs and go for a spin around the neighborhood, and also try to pick up a geocache or two while we are out. Looking forward to that.

Until tomorrow... I srsly plan to right every night how the day went, what I ate, etc., but short posts. Definitely short posts.

2012 was not the easiest of years, but it was definitely better than 2011. Last March, after 15 months of unemployment, I found a new job. It has been a challenging, interesting nine months. I love my job. It stresses the hell out of me, keeps me enormously busy, more often than not I am tired tired TIRED when I get home, but it is worth it.

My boss actually is great to work for. Very appreciative, complimentary, and flat-out tells me how happy he is we found each other. LOL. I think I'm doing okay, and it is getting easier to deal with the stress, channel it away from me, and not let the job rule my life, but it takes work. And thinking about it, and stopping to take deep breaths, etc. It isn't always easy still but then again I rather thrive on the crazy, too. I just have to remind myself not to let it own me, or else that is all I will do. Work, go home, go to bed, get up, start again.

Monetarily, though I make a good salary, it has been an expensive year - getting the daughter moved, getting caught up on bills, vacation (which was awesome and wonderful and too short, and dammit I had a cold the entire time, which sucked, but still, wonderful) and car ailments all added up. But everything along that line is going well now. I hope, hope I can stay balanced in that area of life. Living a basic, frugal life is not a bad thing - since I'm used to it, just going to keep doing it. Build up the bank account again as it was totally smashed by losing my job.

I've made some new friends who actually live within thirty minutes of me. They all came to me via Nano - a group that meets at The Gingerman on Monday nights, and Writer's Without Borders (so named because the Border's they met at closed) on Friday nights. LOL that gives me three writing groups though there is crossover between the two new ones. That gets me out of the house twice a week, which is a good thing.

I also sold a book. Yay! It comes out Feb. 3. It Might Be Magic, through Amber Quill Press. Woo!

Am about to send another one in, a sci fi. New publisher I'm targeting, so hopefully they will want it. Woo! It would be the first in a trilogy.

And now here it is 2013. I've made goals but primarily because my writing group aka Team Awesome has made goals. So I had to make goals too, because they made me. But, I like them. So here you go, C's goals for 2013!!


Carolyn
• Writing Goals:
o Finish rewrite of sci fi and send to LSB by end of January
o Jack Frost book – first draft end of April
o Fantasy – first draft summer’s end
o Drake’s Island – first draft end of year

• Promotion Plans:
o Set up blog tour for IMBM
o Blog regularly

• Website Plans:
o Revamp carolyngraybooks
o Create Fantasy website

• Other Goals:
o Glide through each day in a zen state
o Get knee well, get strong
o www.twohundredsitups.com
o Knock this last 15 lbs. off for good
o Read 2 books a month from different genres
o Create square foot garden and get back to nature

And that's all, folks!