9-7-06

Yesterday was my second meeting with the gals from the Chick Flick Movie Club. There were no movies involved, just sangria...lots of sangria. We had a lovely tapas dinner at Cafe Iberico. For those of you not familiar with tapas, it is a Spanish form of dining that involves small plates of food that are shared among everyone at the table.

It was a great evening - lots of stories and personal tidbits shared as we get to know each other better. One of the gals is quite the character and recounted to us a camping trip that she went on over Labor Day weekend. This was her first time out and although she had all of the gear, she severly underestimated the level of intensity at which the other members of the group hike. On the second day, they left her behind and she had to camp on her own. After that, she tried to make her way back to a road to find some form of civilization and ended up lost. She didn't recount exactly how she made her way out of the delimma, but did mention that there were many tears and frustrated moments involved.

I guess I've become a bit of a club-joining addict of late. I saw a posting for a Croquet Club and decided that I should give that a try. I will report back after our first match. I've been considering putting up a post to try to find a walking buddy. I must admit that I've given up any sembalace of exercising since we moved here three years ago. I'm sure that being accountable to someone to meet regularly would be a good motivator. But, on the other hand, I feel like things are too chaotic for me to commit the time. I suppose the problem is that I haven't made it a priority in my mind, which it deserves to be. I've been having some aching in my thumb joint and the doctor mentioned the possibility of early onset osteoarthritis. He said I should be getting lots of calcium (which I do, thanks to a multivitmin and a love of all things dairy) and should be doing weighlifting with light weights as prevention measures.

The shipping label for the return of the ipod mini came yesterday, so it will soon be on it's way to ipod heaven. JK has talked me into getting the nano. He said that the second generation will be announced soon, and there are (not likely) rumors that colors will be offered. It's a pipe dream, but keep your fingers crossed for me.

Finally, to hop back to the topic of health, I got these tips from a recent message from FlyLady.net:

Here are 5 simple rules of thumb to keep in mind next time you're inthe grocery store. This will help you get the food that will make you feel good, not guilty:

1) Buy stuff that is grown in the ground and easily recognizable. Also known as fruit and vegetables, most of these items won't come in boxes with colorful labels.

2) With few exceptions, most food purchased with a coupon is really pseudo-food that you're not going to want to put in your body. Even if you can double a coupon and buy Hot Pockets, Bagel Bites or something else equally unworthy for less than a dollar, do you still REALLY think this is such a good deal when you consider the negative nutrition you're really going to consume?

3) Read what's in the food you are considering purchasing. If you can't pronounce it, don't buy it. Further, if you don't know what some of the ingredients are on the list, don't buy it either.

4) Make sure you are buying food without dyes. Did you know that the pink coloring of Good and Plenty candy comes from cochineal beetles and their eggs? Pink yogurts also have this coloring and yes, it also comes from dead bugs and their offspring. Sounds yummy, doesn't it?

5) Use a list!! For goodness sake, you can't make magical menus appear off the top of your head, shopping in the grocery store without a list. It takes planning, a menu, a little creativity and yes, a grocery list!