Junk Food Withdrawal

So it's been over a week since we got home from Illinois, where I ate like the world was ending. Seriously, I had so much good unhealthy food, I decided that I am going to take a break from my glutenous lifestyle and practice what I always preach about exercise and moderation. A couple years ago, I lost a lot of weight and changed my lifestyle forever. I did it by gradually shifting my diet and way of thinking and making a lot of exercise a part of my life. I even worked on bodybuilding for a year or so. Well, the gym situation got complicated and I got complacent about everything else eventually and managed to maintain my health for the last couple years, but I never regained that serious focus. The time has come (ran out of pants that fit) to take another shot at making myself healthy, strong, and lighter once more. What's great, is that I've retained a lot of the knowledge I gained last time, so I can immediately make progress without spinning my wheels. As part of my diet, I gave up soda and sweet tea, eating out, and will cut back on the chocolate. I have changed my diet to dried fruits, mixed nuts, fat free yogurt, chicken, mixed vegeables, vegetable juice, tuna and anything else I want in steady moderation. Sure, I can still enjoy a small frozen mocha, but I know that it is a slippery slope and those excess calories and fat will take away the progress I made from a nice long run that afternoon. As far as exercise goes, I am going to be running at least 5 days a week and beginning a small weight regimen to build back some of my strength. I can honestly say that after a week, I feel great. I definitely have more energy and my gut has retreated just a smidgeon. With the change in diet, I feel "cleansed." Maybe you can relate to what I mean. Wish me luck, and hopefully in a month, I will have made some serious progress towards my 20 pound goal.


As someone who does not like to drink fruit juice or vegetable juice, I am so blessed to have found V8 V-fusion. It has 1/2 serving of fruit AND vegetables per glass. And it tastes like an unsweetened fruit juice, so it's pretty darn good.


Erin drew a picture of me one day and I thought it was pretty good, so I'll share it with all ya'll.
While working on the Outlook migration at work (yes, it is still going on. Please shoot me.) we worked in the zoo education office for an evening. I was not alone, however, because I was joined by a giant giraffe carcass. He was wearing a necktie, so he seemed friendly, however, I took no chances.
In the main zoo office, I ran across a miniature water fountain. The only reason I thought it interesting was that it was tiny and tucked away into the wall. Almost missed it. Glad I didn't, because I was thirsty.


With all of the rain lately, the Reedy River has been at a pretty high stage. I was walking past the park earlier this week and heard the roar of the falls...I have never really seen it faster than a trickle, so I had to grab a picture for you to see.
Here's a random picture of a Corvette ZO6 from Kentucky. Nice car.

I was sad that I ate all of the buckeyes back in IL. Well, Ron came to the rescue with a full plate of them from Christmas. His timing was awful, though, because I can't resist them. I only had a few, but I am so glad that everyone else ate them up!

Did you know that McDonald's started putting nutrition info on their product packaging? This is to remind me that I shouldn't be eating there in the first place.

Well, at least I can eat a Big Mac in peace. Nope. What are you trying to do to me??
Erin and I met her friends at a local Japanese steakhouse for dinner recently. I had never been to one before, so I thought, in my head, "sure, why not? I could blog about it!" It's called Mimi's.

The cook was very good, quite fast, and very funny. He picked on my the most. Why do people pick on me so much? You don't know.
I even ate my veggies (most of them). I draw the line at onion.

The soup was nice, salad was ok, and the rice and chicken was awesome. We were served everything separateley, so I wasn't able to provide my typical full plate picture for ya'll to drool over. Trust me, it was yummy! I would say it was expensive, but Erin and I shared the main entree and it was more than enough for both of use and we paid a few dollars more to share one dinner.

The weather here has been mild, but mostly rainy. I guess it's not snow! We only have a couple more weeks of Outlook migrations at work and then we can close the book on the most challenging project and job that I have ever been a part of. It all goes towards a good cause though, though, cause I am saving some of the overtime to buy myself a new motorcycle. (wife approved) I said some because our garage door opener broke the other day so I have to fix it. Didn't we just replace the garage door opener? Oh yeah, that was at our last house. It's not even covered by our home warranty. What a racket. Oh well, my poor car will be okay staying outside for a few nights. I hope you have a wonderful week and thanks for reading the newest entry.. if I find something interesting this week, I'll be sure to share.

A (Cold) Trip Down Memory Lane

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Years! Erin and I are settling back into home after a nice long trip back to Central Illinois. We had the opportunity to spend time with friends and family (and a lot of time with eachother). Sit back and enjoy the (heavily edited) collection of pictures and memories from our trip.

The entire 750 mile trip takes about 12 hours. We switched driving back and forth to keep things interesting. About an hour into the trip, we are climbing and twisting through the North Carolina mountains. The traffic is light and the weather clear.
At one point, in the middle of nowhere, we went under a bridge with Santa and Mrs. Clause all dressed up, waving at traffic. It was a wonderful Christmas Morning touch. God bless them for taking the time to do that! This is definitely the best part of the drive to and from Greenville.

At about 4:00 PM, we started getting into Illinois. It is a stark contrast to what we've been getting used to down South. The temperature was about 40 degrees lower than when we left Greenville. And the flat landscape brought back some memories!

We finally showed up at my folks' place for a nice Christmas dinner. Sam also got some well deserved affection! He was such a good boy in the car: hardly a sound on the entire trip.


Erin and I. Doesn't she look fabulous?!

I took a few moments to see my parent's motorcycles. Cole jumped on the back for a quick photo-op.


When did THIS happen? Pepsi doesn't look like Pepsi anymore. What do ya'll think about the new design? I think it looks too feminine. I won't drink girly soda.



My sister took me to Pizza Ranch for a belated birthday gift. I haven't found anyplace like it back in SC.


Hanging out with my nephews was fun, too. This is Lucas, Michelle's youngest. We're very proud.

Sam didn't get passed by for Christmas, either. He got some new snazzy fashion accessories...

And some PediPaws since he HATES getting his nails trimmed. Awesome!


Now I can take BWW home with me, since I can't get my favorite sauces anymore.

Of course, I got some chocolate. Actually, it's more like my family wants to kill me. I already put the bulk of it in the freezer so won't feel the obligation to eat it all right now.

For years, I have been talking to Erin about how sad I am that I don't get fun toys on Christmas. Well this year, I finally got some Legos and Erin got a new version of her favorite Cabbage Patch doll. There's nothing wrong with playing with toys at our age!
For church, we went to our old stomping grounds at Northwest United Methodist Church. They just installed a new sign on War Memorial Drive. Can you tell that the address numbers are upside down?

The church was beautifully decorated.

Here's Michelle and Daryl catching their breaths.

What's Sunday without a trip to Quizno's?

A few days after we arrived in IL, we went down to Springfield to see Erin's family.

More festivities.

What's better than Pictionary with family and friends?

Answer: Margaritas and Pictionary with family and friends.

Sam had the opportunity to socialize with Alan's Rhodesians. Yep, they could tear our poor dog to pieces.

The top priority, foodwise, was going to Panda for some orange chicken. OMG I miss it so much.

After lunch, we went to St. John Lutheran Church to see some of Erin's past coworkers.

Ya gotta love this sanctuary! Gorgeous!

While she was there, Erin got some organ practicing in.

They have a nice pipe organ there.

I got a little curious and went up into the organ loft to get a close up view.

Have you ever seen a pipe organ close-up? It's pretty interesting. Lots of different sizes, shapes, and types of pipes make all of those different sounds.

Back in Peoria, I went out with my good friend Jon.

I got some Wild boneless wings, but in all honestly, they are not hot enough for me anymore. Looks like I will have to get the hottest sauce next time.

After dinner, we went back to his place to watch Hellboy II. Pretty good flick! By that time, the temp had dropped, the snow started flurrying, and the wind bit into your skin. It was about that time that I really started to miss Greenville.
Our families were wonderful, providing us with nice places to sleep. It was nice to sleep and relax and think about nothing else while on vacation. This was my first real vacation since August 07. Moving doesn't count, cause I didn't get a lot of rest between the home closings, packing, and traveling.


Mom, Sam, and I braved a cold day to go for a nice long walk. Sam loves walks but doesn't get enough of them back home.

Here's Mom! It was a windy 25 degrees, so you can't really see much of her.

This is where I grew up...a nice quiet country road. Great for walking, running, bicycling, and learning how to ride a motorcycle!

Something really special about Christmas this year was that our whole family was together...and that is quite a feat for me and Chel living so far away.

We had a great time, though and are happy to be home again. I am slowly warming to the idea of returning to work. Not really excited, but it has been a while! I am also taking the opportunity to lose some weight this month, so you'll probably hear me talk a little about that in my blog. I hope you have a wonderful New Year! See you back here soon, for another exciting adventure.