Tag: Memoir

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Home Alone 2024 – Weekend Update

This post is a Weekend Update to Home Alone. Worriers worry about everything. So to ease worried minds here’s what I’ve done the past several days.

  • I’ve watched two OKC Thunder games and have another game to watch tonight. Just one championship before I die would be nice.
  • I went to the grocery store. Twice. Maybe three times if I go later today. How is it possible for a grocery store to be out of (or not stock) stewed tomatoes?
  • Solitude offers time and space to think deeply about things and learn more about yourself. I’ve learned I always forget at least one item when I go grocery shopping.
  • Home alone last Holiday season I didn’t feel like cooking. This year is different. I’ve been cooking every day.
  • I found a two pound bag of pre-cooked frozen meatballs. The price per pound was less than the cost of uncooked ground beef. I bought a bag.

I decided to make meatball soup. Yes, that’s a nonstick frying pan because I wanted more pan surface to brown the meatballs and veggies.

This is what the soup looked like before I added the broth.

  • Memo to Self – next time transfer the meatballs and veggies to a soup pot then add the broth.
  • I’m surprised at the quality of the frozen meatballs. Obviously not as good as homemade, but very convenient with flavor reminiscent of the best cafeteria food you ever had.
  • I did not go to downtown OKC and hang at the Asian superstore. The strange vegetable experiment didn’t happen.
  • I listened to more Reckless Kelly.
  • I downloaded a bunch of free books to my Kindle most of which I’ll likely never read. This activity satisfies my hoarding tendencies.
  • My usual house-cleaner was out of town. I cleaned the shower and all of the toilets.
  • I almost made one side of the bed this morning before I realized it was Sunday and Sundays are bed sheet days.
  • I bought Christmas cards for next year.
  • The meatball soup was good but not good enough to post a recipe. it’s not good enough to serve for company but also not bad enough to toss out.
  • Bourbon.
  • I went to the gym after a six week hiatus. My eyeball doctor told me to cut back on the exercise so I went into slug mode. Today everything hurts. Everything.
  • I’ve gotten a lot more reading done (when not watching basketball).
  • I learned about the connection between smartphones, ultra processed foods, diminished family bonds and mental wellness. See my other blog https://lifeunderwriter.net/2024/12/29/smartphones-ultra-processed-foods-diminished-family-bonds-and-mental-wellness/
  • I posted more to my blogs.

I trust this update helps the worriers in my family to worry less. It’s back to The Day Job tomorrow so everyone knows what I’ll be doing during the daylight hours.

But before I forget…Reckless Kelly featuring Kelly Willis

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Home Alone

This year marks the third year in a row I’m home alone after Christmas (not counting, just stating facts). I know some family members worry about The Old Man Home Alone so I thought I would post my thoughts to let everyone know I’m doing OK. As an old man who could have retired years ago but didn’t my days are filled with work. Real day job work. It’s the nights alone in a quiet house that the worriers worry about. So to ease everyone’s minds here are my activities and what I do Home Alone.

  • Invited a friend out for his birthday last night. He bought. Win win.
  • Bourbon.
  • Is there an OKC Thunder game on? If yes, I’m watching the game. If no, see number 2.
  • I like to cook and try new recipes when The Boss is gone. Successes go into the rotation. Failures go into the trash.
  • When I have a recipe failure, see number 2.
  • Listen to more Reckless Kelly. (I can’t listen to music with words while working because I start singing along and I lose focus)
  • I hate to waste food so… I make stuff up.
  • 3 pounds of chicken thighs bone-in, about a dozen corn tortillas, half a can of chopped green chilies, some leftover homemade enchilada sauce in the freezer, and always plenty of cheese in the fridge.
  • I braised the thighs in white wine, garlic and onion powders ( I love powdered veggies).
  • Chicken Enchilada Casserole!

Saturday and Sunday will be challenging. I might head to downtown OKC and hang at the Asian superstore. Might even find some strange vegetables to experiment with.

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Save Me From Myself

Kids these days got it made in the shade, but they got a lot of lessons to learn
So every once in a while let ’em play with fire so they can find out how to not get burned

Willy Braun

Merry Christmas y’all to those who celebrate.

You been good?

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Trouble in Paradise 2024 (it’s Weight Gain Season again)

I’ve been posting this chart for several years around the Holiday Season. The source has been attributed to the New England Journal of Medicine. but I could never find the original source article.

Obesity prevalence among older Americans has increased at an alarming rate. In a single generation—between 1988-1994 and 2015-2018—the share of U.S. adults ages 65 and older with obesity nearly doubled, increasing from 22% to 40%.13 – Fact Sheet: Aging in the United States https://www.prb.org/resources/fact-sheet-aging-in-the-united-states/

At the beginning of every month I record my weight in my personal journal. I started November at 176.2. I managed to survive two birthdays, one homemade Eddie’s Carrot Sheet Cake, a few cupcakes, and the recurring annual threat of Halloween candy. Two more months to go.

My doctor says I worry too much about gaining weight. But she’s a hell of lot younger so what does she really know about my aging metabolism?

Remember this from two years ago? Well the bakers showed up again this Thanksgiving.

It was so good we did it again.

This year’s Thanksgiving was wonderful and memorable in a number of ways. The first blessing of the season was I didn’t have to drive. Let’s just say The Boss wouldn’t let me drive.

The next blessing was spending time with relatives we had not seen in several years. We shared stories, made fun of one another and had a great time. Thanksgiving was different this year; neither of our kids and their families were with us. So we had to borrow a Tiny Human for the occasion.

One Tiny Human, a lot more aunts, uncles, parents and grandparents.

The best blessing was I managed to gain just two pounds from this year’s Thanksgiving food binge.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. Stay well. Stay slim.

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Maybe

I write a phrase, then wait for what follows. Then hold still as nothing more comes. Then I delete the first words and fall back into silence.

Maybe all that has been written before is enough. Maybe it’s time to say less—time to hide quietly beyond words and positions and insights. Maybe it’s time to allow what has come before to be what has already happened.

Maybe it’s time to stop. Maybe just this morning or maybe tomorrow too. Maybe only occasionally. Maybe not at all for a long while.

We’ll see.

Blog post by David Rynick May 11, 2021 – https://davidrynick.com/blog/

I feel the same way today.

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Scary Charts – 10.10.24 (and the answer to the question is NO)

Who’s Drinking (Non-Alcoholic) Beer? – https://www.statista.com/chart/33210/regular-beer-drinkers-survey/

Anyone who knows me personally or has followed my blog posts know I have a fondness for beer. The problem is empty non-nutritional calories. I just learned about Persistent Metabolic Adaptation so I thought why not try a new strategy? Yup, I’m testing non-alcoholic beers. Sample size is small, researcher bias definitely exists, so don’t try to extrapolate my findings to a larger population of non-alcoholic beers. So, straight to the research.

Coors Edge – somewhat palatable, tastes somewhat like beer.

Heineken 0.0 – odd taste, worse aftertaste almost like a spoiled real Heineken.

I’m guessing whatever the Spaniards are drinking must taste better than the zero taste, zero alcohol brews we have in the US.

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Persistent Metabolic Adaptation

Sunday 10/6

Straight to the point. My BMI is back in the overweight range. I was hoping for a random uptick with a gradual return to my 173-175 range but it has not happened. I now fluctuate between 177 and 178. Another pound or two and my skinny jeans won’t fit anymore. So the research geek in me took over. I wanted to know why I’m gaining weight after years of keeping my number down. Lack of enough exercise was an obvious reason. But I also felt my metabolism changed (again) so down the rabbit hole I went. The deeper I went the dots starting connecting.

I recall reading somewhere that successful weight loss maintainers changed their diets multiple times in their lifetimes. I found this to be true in my case. Remember The Biggest Loser television show? I found this fascinating study Persistent metabolic adaptation 6 years after “The Biggest Loser” competition – https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.21538. Fascinating because the participants with greater long-term weight loss also had greater ongoing metabolic slowing. It appears my metabolism is slowing down not just from age but also from the fact I’ve maintained my weight loss for a long time.

And if this wasn’t bad enough I stumbled upon Metabolic adaptation is associated with a greater increase in appetite following weight loss: a longitudinal study – https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2023.10.010. Lose weight. Appetite increases!

The universe opened up her secrets to me. I need to change my diet (again).

Take Home Lesson

Long-term weight loss requires perpetual behavioral adaptation to offset persistent metabolic adaptation.

In plain English, I have to eat less or I’m screwed. Because I already know I’m in the one third category.

About 10 percent of older people living in their own homes do not eat enough and one-third of people over the age of 65 eat too much. More than half of older people in hospitals or nursing homes have malnutrition (poor nutrition or diet). – https://www.healthinaging.org/a-z-topic/nutrition/basic-facts

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