Burbank

I am glad to be home! I spent last week in Burbank CA due to meetings and work on my project. It was actually a pretty good week. I spent one day visiting stores in that market. I went to the Brentwood store and saw Jane Lynch coming out of Whole Foods. Of course I stared like a crazy person. And then I forgot to go feed the meter and got a $50 parking ticket. Holy Crap! Who charges $50 for a parking ticket? That is ridiculous. I can't say I ate much good food. I ate in the hotel restaurant the first night and had a burger and a beer. Nothing to brag about. The 2nd night I walked over to Outback with the intentions of getting the pork chop. Unfortunatly they now put the calorie counts on the menu and I just couldn't order it since it was over 1000 calories. Instead I got the salmon and steamed veggies at 600 calories. It was pretty good but I'm sure I wasted calories with the pomegrante margarita. Yum! It was like candy in a glass. The next night we went to a burger joint in downtown Burbank. It wasn't anything special.
I took workout clothes with me but just didn't muster the power to go to the gym. I have got to get better at that. It means not drinking the beer and not putting the pj's on and climbing into bed.
Next week I'm headed to NYC! Can't wait. It has been years since I've been in city. I'm going to really try to use the gym at least 2 times because I know I'll be eating some bad/good food. I plan to take lot's of photo of my adventure and post for all to see. They have snow right now so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it clears up a bit. I don't even have a coat. I think I need to go shopping.

Last Sunday Jane and I went to the Crocker. It is a beautiful museum and much larger then I would have thought for Sacramento. Just wanted to share a photo for the week so here goes.
Enjoy!

And so it begins

The new job assignment is officially underway. This was my first full week and it did not feel great. The job is so undefined that it felt weird. I have to figure out what I'm actually doing. I know that is part of the growth for me in figuring out how to structure a project and bring value to it. Ugghh. Yesterday I just kept thinking that I wanted my old job back! I knew what I was doing in it and I was good at it. This weekend I have to get my head on straight.
On the positive side, this assignment is allowing me to travel a bit. I spent 3 days in San Francisco. I love the city!
I always forget how beautiful it is and how much there is too see. Plus I ate some great food. The first night I ate at Hubert Keller's Burger Bar. Since he is such a famous chef, I assumed it would be fabulous. You'll have go go to my Burger blog to read the review. The second night I ate at Farralon. It was a block away from the hotel and I ate there years ago with friends and remembered it was good. It was delicious. I sat at the bar and had a yummy Stockholm cocktail (Champagne, vodka, Chambord, pineapple juice and sugar around the rim.) Then for dinner I had the beet salad and the Tuna Tartare. The beet salad had pureed beets and sliced yellow and orange beets. It also had cheese and fried garlic chips on it. Delicious! For dessert I had the poached pear served on a little piece of spice cake. Also Delicious.
I photographed the food at the Burger Bar (See the burger blog) but not at Farralons. I guess because it was so fancy I hated to look like a tourist. But I wish I had because I am a tourist!
I visited Starbucks all over the city. I walked a ton. I'm going to go on to my walking website today and chart just how far I went. I'm sure it was a least a couple of miles. And I did not have on the best walking shoes. I figure the walking was my exercise for the week. I love that SF has such beautiful buildings and the architecture is stunning. You have to remember to look up occasionally and you'll see incredible detail on buildings.
I sat in a little courtyard right near the Transamerica building and there was this little fountain with frogs. Typically I'm not a huge frog fan but it was nice and peaceful and just steps away from the busy street. I love it! As I walked around the city I thought about what it would be like to live in a big city again. It has been years since I've done that. I think DC was the last time and that was in the late 80's-early 90's. Wow, I'm old! Someday I would do it again if the time was right. I love having a house and a yard but I could see that later in life it would be nice to not have the hassle that goes with those 2 things. I would need a very small dog. As long as I have my 2 boys, I have to have a yard. They love to run too much.
Next week I'm in Burbank all week for meetings. Then it is off to NY! I am really excited. I haven't been to NY in at least 5 years so it will be nice to go back. I feel a little nervous about it but that has never stopped me before. I will spend 3 days in the city and then travel out to NJ to visit Jim and his family. Can't wait!
I promise to eat in at least 2 great restaurants and take photos. Who cares if I look like a tourist.

MLK

Happy holiday! Today we celebrate MLK and his legacy. I'm really celebrating because at work this is the first time this holiday has been added an "Official" holiday for us. It's a paid day off! I have been an incredible slug so far. Not sure that is the best way to honor his legacy but I'll see if I'm inspired to do something more profound.
The weekend has been nice and relaxing. The dogs got groomed on Saturday and they are nice and clean. Buddy looks so much better when he is clean cut. Sonny looks the same.
Sunday I cleaned the house and the Hastings came over to watch the Golden Globes. John came over earlier with Rory and he took care of the yard. The front yard looks good but the backyard is still rough. the leaves are stuck in the mud and I think the grass is dead. At least the yucky old topsy turvys with the dead tomatoes are gone.
I pulled out the treadmill on Saturday and walked 2 miles. First time in 6 months. It felt good. I'm walking again today. At least 2 miles. If I can do that 3 times this week and then up it to 3 miles next week, I'll feel good. The food thing isn't going as well. I ate a lot of chips and salsa yesterday along with the yummy Velveeta cheese dip.
I have a ton of salad stuff in the fridge so it is salads this week.
I'm searching for the zumba WI game but is seems to be sold out at all the Targets. Annette is suppose to lend me her DVD's for zumba so at least I can try it. The info mercial says you can lose a dress size in 10 days. But I'm guessing that means using it everyday for at least an hour. Probably not going to happen.
I saw on-line today an article about people who loss weight and blogged about it. The blogs helped hold them accountable. It's time to get serious and see if I can make a move on the scale.

Saturday

Boy this week went by fast. A lot of transition this week. I officially ended my current job and am starting a new assignment. I handed off the regional assignment to Tony and with that I handed off 9 months of hard work and 3.5 yrs of relationships. Really hard. Now I need to step back and let Tony take over. It will be hard to not call folks and be a part of what is happening but it is necessary for him to be successful. Over the next few months I'll be working on a project that will require me to step out of my comfort zone. Manage a project and not people. It's all good. Hard but good.

Now on to more exciting topics... Last Sunday I went to the farmers market. There wasn't a ton to choose from. Mainly oranges, potatoes, onions, apples. I was looking for beets but couldn't find any. I did manage to get a couple of sweet potatoes. I bought a bag of oranges and split them with my sister. I don't really eat a lot of oranges but I know they are good for me so I'm going to give it a shot. Tried to eat good all week. I did pretty well except for last night. Last night I met Rory and Annette at the casino, Thunder Valley, and we had the crab feast buffet. Yum. Crab legs, mac and cheese, potatoes, dessert, etc. I didn't over do it but I'm sure I had more then i should. I gambled a little bit. Didn't win anything but I do love the slot machines!! I could sit there all day! If only I had the cash.
Still didn't pull out the treadmill. Ugghh. Not sure what's wrong with me. It is coming out this weekend. I tried on some clothes the other night that I bought a couple of months ago and haven't even worn. Guess what? They don't fit. Okay I can actually get the skirts on but my booty is giant in them. They look way too tight. I have to get moving because I can't afford to buy all new clothes.
Today- Dogs go to the groomer, treadmill comes out, house gets cleaned (Something in the kitchen stinks!) and the yard gets cleaned up. Lucky for me the yard work I will pay John to do :)
Later alligator!

Get started!

It is Saturday already and I have been slow to move. Not sure where the week went. My job assignment is currently wrapping down and I'm starting to plan my next steps, more on that at a later date, and I managed to spend the entire week in my office. I got nothing accomplished! Didn't even get rid of the Christmas stuff. That means I have a big list in front of me for this weekend. I'm getting rid of all Christmas today! Actually this morning. (As soon as I quit wasting time on the blog :) then it's off to see my nephew john who just turned 17 yesterday. We are going to hit the Squeeze Inn for the best burger in town. That does not really work with Resolution #1 to lose weight but it is his birthday. It does work for my resolution to keep my blogs updated. John and I started a Burger Blog a couple of years ago and I am getting it back on track. (See the link below) I am going to counteract the bad burger by pulling out the treadmill for the first time in months and walking 2 miles. Then I have to do a little bit of work e-mail before I can wrap up the day. Tomorrow... I'm buying a new TV. Finally moving into the 21st century and getting a flatscreen. Mine keeps cutting off. It's only 10+ years old so I think it's time.
Last weekend, when I started this blog, I was trying to figure out a name. I wanted to make it something I feel passionate about. I love Food, Book and Dogs. But the Food, book and dog blog didn't sound that great. That night I made Sweet Potatoes, Onions and Apples, roasted in the oven.
I adore Sweet Potatoes. I try to eat them once a week. So I thought... why not call it Sweet Potato Fries. Not sure if I will stick with it and since I haven't shared it with anyone yet, I still have the time to change it. For now... it stays.
This week I tried making Beer Bread. The recipe was posted on the Farmgirl Fare blog that I follow. It was really simple and pretty good. I used a dark heavy beer and it is almost too much. The bread is really dense so I think I will go with a lighter beer next time. I also think I'll increase the cheese. This is a recipe I'll hold onto and work it out until I get it right.

Tomorrow.... the farmers market. Haven't been all winter and I anxious to see what they have right now. I'll take the camera.
Time to move!

A new day... a new blog

This is not my first blog. Oh no. It is my 4th blog. First there was the one that my dog Sonny wrote with my help. Eventually his voice ran out. There was only so many times he could talk about chasing squirrels, taking naps and getting a belly rub. So a year and a half ago he retired. Then there was the Burger Blog. This one was started with my nephew, who is now 16. We were searching for the perfect burger and documenting our search. It turned out that I did most of the writing and he did the eating. We did well for about a year and then last year it stalled. I have decided to keep the blog and start back on the search. This time it will be more about us spending time together and no expectations of him writing. Then there was the Challenge blog. This one was created due to a weight loss challenge we had a work. A group of us were trying to lose weight and decided to blog about it. It lasted for 3 months. I did not win the challenge. Far from it. I think I lost 3 lbs and dropped the blog.
This time I'm writing for me. As I made my list of resolutions this year, I included keeping a journal. That is something I've never been good at but thought I might try. As I thought about the point of the journal, I realized a blog would be better suited. I want to share my thoughts on things I love, things I hope to accomplish and places I hope to go. Plus, I love the creative part of a blog. The photo's, links, quotes, etc. I'm a big believer that if you share your goals, you are held accountable to them.

So... Here is my first list of resolutions for 2011. I'll expand on them throughout the year and address them in my own way.
1) Lose weight. Okay, okay. I know that everyone makes this their resolution. I make it every year and each time I last about 1 week. This time I have to do something. My clothes are too tight. Plus I'm almost at my top weight EVER! Not good. I'm going to try to make the goals small so that I can have some success. This first month- 5 lbs. I'll give details later.
2) Exercise- this ties into the first one. I want to go back to yoga, use the WI-FIt and discover Zumba. Plus, as soon as Sonny's leg gets better, I want to start walking again.
3) Purge my junk! Bedroom, office, kitchen, garage. Too much junk.
4) Get Finances in line. Stop using the credit card and start paying it down.
5) read more. I use to have several books going at once. Now I'm lucky to finish the book group choice in time. I need to start those books earlier and get in one other book each month.
6) Travel- plan a trip out of the country this year.
7) be more adventurous in my cooking. I love to cook but play it too safe. Most of the time I'm just lazy and want to eat. Keeping my first resolution in mind, I want to get back to having fun in the kitchen.

That seems like a good start. I will share my successes and failures along the way. Stay tuned.