On November 11 I gave up refined sugar. I indulged in gobs of ice cream and daily mochas the few weeks prior to the big day, and practically made myself sick with sugar. I’ve been sugar-free a whole week. Woo hoo!
For several days I’ve had headaches and aches in the back of my legs, mostly behind my knees. I’ve also had odd aches and pains in my knee joints and hips. The knee pain is reminiscent of when I had arthritis. Mostly I’m just tired. I’ve read that it can take several weeks for the body to switch from a sugar-burning metabolism to a fat-burning metabolism. I am happy to report that I’ve lost three pounds.
Sugar cravings lasted only a couple days, and now I’m pretty comfortable and steady. But at night after dinner I like to watch TV and eat a couple pomegranates. We’re just now starting the pomegranate season and my local Wegmans sells huge beauties at two dollars each. So I am getting some sugar, but all refined sugars are off the table.
On another note, since giving up sugar my salt cravings have diminished. Or maybe it’s just because of the supplements I’m taking now.
I got my side of beef last week. Last night I roasted and ate a chuck roast and steamed asparagus. The night before I roasted a pasture-raised chicken with root vegetables. It’s fun learning how to cook. In a couple weeks my side of pork will be ready for pickup.
My friend Pete and I went to see 2012 on Friday. If you like special effects, then you need to see this show in the theater, not on DVD. The story wasn’t so great (typical Hollywood serendipity with heroes escaping destruction at the last minute), but the action never stopped. WOW! Watching the world blow up is pretty entertaining. Are the Mayans and Hopis right? Will our planet’s poles shift 2012?
I bought us popcorn and when the cashier asked if I wanted butter, of course I said yes. I love buttery popcorn. Then I asked if it was real butter or soybean oil? He let me look at the container: partially hydrogenated soybean oil and butter flavor. Disgusting. Yeah, I ate it, because I had my heart set on it, but that’s the last time I eat popcorn from a theater. How could anyone in their right mind think that concoction is healthier than real butter? We’ve been hoodwinked!
I’ve spent most of the past few weeks learning my Mac and the video editing software Final Cut Express, I’ve published my first interview on Joanne Unleashed. It was originally going to be a Skype interview over the Internet, but I ended up doing it in my home. I used two cameras to record the interview, and I spent probably eight hours editing the two videos into one. I learned a lot, and I really enjoyed it. Check it out and let me know what you think.
