Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch (3/100)

I am not the type of person to cry and at a book or movie. I don't really have a book or something that has "changed my life." But I can honestly say that now I think I have. The subtitle for this book says, "A recovery book for the chronic dieter. Rediscover the pleasures of eating and rebuild your body image." If I had to sum up the concepts behind the book, I would simply say, "Eat when you are hungry. Stop when you are full." This may seem like common sense to most people. But as a person who has been dieting for half of her 26 years on this planet, it truly means a lot.

I saw this book recommended on the Health and Fitness board and figured what do I have to lose? I have been counting points for 3 years now (hard to believe isn't it?) I have had food struggles for as long as I can remember and more often than not, I put my weight far before my health. Now I am going to do my best to be a healthy person, not a thin person because my quest for thinness is also making me a miserable person.

While reading this book, I literally gasped out loud several times because what it was saying literally spoke to me. My first thoughts upon waking up are now things like, "I can have milk in my cereal! I can enjoy my coffee! I don't HAVE to order egg whites for every breakfast!" I am almost ashamed at how much I have let food rule my life.

The Epilogue says, "This may be the end of the book, but if you choose to become an Intuitive Eater, it becomes a new beginning." I hope that this is true for me. I am going to try and listen to my hunger for a month and see where that takes me. In the meantime, I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever thought twice about how much they weigh and what they eat. 5 stars

The Weight of Water by Anita Shreve

65 pages into this book, I decided I wasn't really feeling it. I didn't like the way it kept flipping between the past and present without so much as a space in the lines. There were very few chapters or page breaks and I think it made everything feel longer. A woman is supposed to take pictures where a murder happened a hundred years prior. She discovers the secrets of the murder. I felt it was fairly obvious as to who actually murdered the women, and was not shocked at all by that aspect. However, I was shocked by the incest, lesbian tendencies and death of an innocent child. I wanted to keep reading to finish the book, but I would not recommend it. 2 and a half stars

Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich (1/100)

Whenever I get one of these books, I usually finish it within 48 hours of it being released. This time, I had a ton of library books so it just set on my bureau for a while. I jumped into it yesterday, and as usual, it was a super quick read and over in less than 30ish hours. I wouldn't say it was the best of the series, but I enjoyed it. The Stephanie Plum series never lets me down. Some quotes that I liked:

Stephanie: "I'm yelling at you."
Zook: "I didn't notice. It sounded like dinner at my grandma's house."

Grandma Mazur: "We're not in the Stone Age here. I blog and everything."

Crud, I had other quotes posted but it didn't save for some reason. Let's just say one had to do with a vagina implant. I also laughed out loud during the Cluck in a Bucket incident and at some other times, like always with her books. Time to start the countdown until the next one comes out!

Things I Want My Daughters To Know by Elizabeth Noble

I ordered this book on the pretense that it was a true story of a woman who was dying and decided she had life lessons for her daughters. Instead it was a novel. Not what I had in mind, but totally my fault. Anyway, I thought the book was okay. I had a hard time keeping some of the characters straight. I kept confusing daughters and boyfriends/husbands/stepdads. I didn't think there were really any lessons from the mom per se, just family information that helped them grow. Oddly enough, it had the happiest ending of a book I have read in a while. 3 stars

101 Things in 1,001 days

This is not a book post really, but it needed somewhere to go. Therefore, this challenge will also be a part of this blog.

You can find more info about 101 Things in 1,001 days here:

http://www.triplux.com/dayzero/

So here is my list. I probably should have spread out the time it took for me to write it instead of basically spending an entire work day doing it, but I really wanted to get it done. I was going to start August 1, but since we are going on our trip next week, I think I am going to start today.

Start date: July 21, 2008
End date: April 18, 2011

Some of these *may* be subject to change but at this time, I plan on trying to do all of them. And awaaayyyyyyyy we go!

Self:

1. Have a baby

2. Get published

3. Enter a contest that requires a skill

4. Make 1,000 entries in a gratitude journal

5. Redo a piece of furniture

6. Go to 10-year reunion and look fabulous

7. EDIT: Complete one month of "Intuitive Eating" starting 7/26

8. Turn down something I don’t want to do without unnecessary excuses

9. Stand up for myself

10. Do something I have never done before (St. Maarten April 2009)

11. Do something out of my comfort zone (Faculty Basketball game, ROBMS May 2009)

12. Get together ten outfits I love and feel completely great in

13. Write a letter to myself at the end of each month to be read at the end of 1001 days (4/33)

14. Find hair happiness (2009 - thank you Chi!)

15. Complete an entire day without saying anything negative

16. Go one week without cursing

17. Go one week without being judgmental

18. Carry a goal list with me (done! in my planner)

19. Be a generally happier person at the end of this project than I was at the start

Family:

20. Do something nice for Dave without him having to ask

21. Throw dad a party

22. Write a journal for my children

23. Give mom a break (success! 7/23/08)

24. Do something nice for Matt

25. Find a new food that Dave will eat

26. Get Dave the planned 30^th birthday gift

27. Establish a holiday tradition

28. Cook dinner for someone (Marty's birthday)

Others:

29. Volunteer for something I want to do / help with (Courage for Kyle 5/2/09)

30. Support Amy in Diabetes Walk (done! 10/4/08)

31. Raise $200+ for Diabetes Walk (did it...barely! 10/3/08)

32. Surprise someone

33. Stand up for someone

34. Send 10 “Just Because” pieces of snail mail (1/10)

35. Write a positive service letter

36. Donate to Locks of Love

37. Give a really good tip (Phoenix Diner $50 tip on $90 bill 01/19/09)

Health:

38. Drink 64 ounces of water every day for one month

39. Use sunscreen religiously

40. Floss every day

41. Go to dentist every 6 months

42.Take a CPR class (Feb 2010)

43. Maintain a healthy weight

44. Take vitamins every day for 30 straight days

45. Go one month without soda

Money:

46. Pay off all debt that is not student loans or mortgage (May 2009)

47. Save $10,000

48. See a financial planner

49. Sell elliptical machine (June 2009)

Learning / Professional:

50. Complete my last class (done! Dec 2008)

51. Complete my thesis (April 2010)

52. Get my Master’s degree (May 2010)

53. Take a class that is not degree related (dance April 2009)

54. Learn sign language

55. EDIT: get a tattoo (Aug 2009)

56. Touch a student’s life (done 2008-2009)

57. Coach three times (Track 2008, Volleyball 2008, Dance 2009)

Travel:

58. Scrapbook all states completed (done 8/15/08)

59. Visit Alabama

60. Visit Alaska

61. Visit Georgia (completed 7/30/08)

62. Visit Kentucky

63. Visit Louisiana

64. Visit Maine

65. Visit Massachusetts

66. Visit New Hampshire

67. Visit North Carolina

68. Visit Ohio

69. Visit South Carolina (completed 7/29/08)

70. Visit Tennessee

71. Visit West Virginia

72. Go to at least one state on the west coast

73. Update my passport (done, 1/22/09)

House:

74. Stop leaving clothes around in the bedroom – put them away immediately

75. Organize Roo’s closet (done! 7/26/08)

76. Organize Daisy’s closet (done 8/2/08)

77. Plant an apple tree (done 6/1/09)

78. Clean out car. Keep it clean and organized. (done 8/2/08)

Earth:

79. Use reusable grocery bags (did it yesterday, and plan on continuing to do it 8/18/08)

80. Recycle (doing good!)

81. Successfully freecycle 10 things (1/10 entertainment center 7/23/08)

Fun:

82. Win something (gift certificate basket - 1/24/09)

83. Go to 5 new local places (4/5 TuGo's 7/26/08, Mac's Shack 8/8/08, coffee shop in Mystic, bagel shop in Tuckerton, Buckalew's LBI 5/30/09)

84. Do a Murder Mystery dinner

85. Be an extra in a movie / TV show or audition for something

86. Go to a taping of a live TV show

87. Eat food from a different culture (Indian with Shelley - March 2009)

88. Pick my own fruit (Apples - October 2008)

89. Bake something beautiful

90. EDIT: Redo my whole wardrobe and sell/donate old clothes

91. Read 100 books (100/100)

92. Read 200 books

93. Read 300 books

94. Read 400 books

95. Read 500 books

96. Meet a favorite author (Janet Evanovich June 23, 2009)

97. Walk in the rain (got soaked with family and laughed our butts off 8/14/08)

98. Knit a scarf (knitted several for Christmas 2008)

99. Knit something I would be proud to give someone (blanket Christmas 2008)

100. Try a new food (completed 7/30/08 - fried green tomatoes)

101. Develop a signature dish

50/101 = 49.5% complete 08/22/10

The Land of Mango Sunsets by Dorothea Benton Frank

This is another book I just added to my TBR pile since it was on the nest. I started reading it and just wasn't feeling it, so I read Lucky instead. Then I went back to TLOMS and was feeling just so so for a while. I am not sure what happened, but all of a sudden I couldn't put it down. One morning, I just read 200+ pages because I wanted to finish it.

The basic premise is that it is about a woman who lives alone (except for her talkative parrot) in a townhouse in NYC. She rents out the other two sections of the townhouse to her best friend, Kevin, and a man who dies at the beginning of the novel. Her and Kevin have auditions for the free room and wind up renting it to a woman (Liz) who turns out to be having an affair with the husband of one of Miriam's "friends." Miriam is disgusted by this since her husband left her for "the other woman."

I think this may have been the point that the book truly turned around on me. Miriam spills the beans about the affair and Liz winds up getting horribly beaten by the man she was sleeping with. Miriam feels horribly guilty and this starts the gears in motion for her making things right in her life. She fixes the broken relationships she has with her sons, gets over her husband's betrayal, spends important quality time with her mother, and finds love and a more fulfilling life. It, too, was sad in the end (seems to be a trend in the books I have been reading) but it was still uplifting. I really wound up enjoying it. 4 stars

Lottery by Patricia Wood

I looooved this book. It is the story of Perry L. Crandall (his Gram tells him the L stands for "lucky"), who is NOT retarded. His IQ is 76 and in order to be classified as retarded, it must be 75 or below. For some reason, I really enjoy books from an autistic / mentally challenged perspective. This was a super quick read - I finished it within 24 hours.

Perry's Gram taught him everything. One of those things was to play the lottery. After Gram dies, Perry wins $12 million. All of his unscrupulous and uncaring family members begin coming out of the woodwork and try to take advantage of him. I laughed out loud when his "cousin-brother" left him at his house (while trying to get him to sign Power of Attorney) and Perry is trying to hide dog poop under his couch.

I didn't really love the ending and I thought it was sadder than it really had to be, but that may be what the author wanted. I was upset that his family got any money but I guess that is what makes the story even more heartwarming, since Perry didn't actually need the money to be happy. 4 and 1/2 stars

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

I decided to read this book because it was on a list of "New Classics" and also on the list of "1,001 Books you Must Read Before You Die" and because it was recommended from the nest. When I started reading it, I decided I hated it. It was very "smart." It is about a guy who leaves California because he hates his parents and chooses to go to college in Vermont simply because he liked the picture in the brochure. I can respect that.
When he gets to Vermont, he wants to take Greek because it was what he had studied in California. However, the Greek professor is very choosy and only has a group of 5 students. Well this man Richard, finally persuades him to let him join the bunch. I say that the book is "smart" because it is full of Plato and Aristotle and gin and bourbon, and suit jackets and expensive dinners. But by the time I was halfway through it had sucked me in.
4 of the original 5 had murdered someone (although I was a little confused by the details) and they were worried that the 5th would turn them in. Eventually, they killed him too, with the help of Richard. Subsequently, everything falls apart. The story was haunting and deep. I liked it but did not love love it. I would say 3 and a half stars.

1,000 White Women by Jim Fergus

I had been hearing about this book for ages, although don't ask me from where. It kept going back to the library when I didn't pick it up. I was afraid it was too intellectual or something. But when I went to the library one day it was waiting for me, even though I didn't know it was going to be there. The book is a collection of fictional journal entries from May Dodd, a woman from the 1800's who was committed to an insane asylum for being too promiscuous. At first I thought it may be a true story and I actually had to go back and reread the beginning to learn that it was all fictional. It was more entertaining than I thought it would be, but still a slow read. An Indian Chief asks the US to provide 1,000 white women to marry their tribesmen and produce partially white children (this part claims to be true). Being a bunch of great guys, the US decides to accept but only send insane women (not true, but certainly believable). The women go, bear children, and then die at the hands of the very US that sent them. Rings a bit true, don't you think? Overall, it was a good book, and I would give it 3 stars.

Baby Plays Around by Helene Stapinski

I added this book to my TBR pile because it was recommended somewhere on the nest. As soon as I saw the book and read the jacket, I knew I would hate it. But I tried to read it anyway. It is (I believe) a non-fiction story about how a woman is able to accomplish her life-long dream of joining a band. I am not really into music, per se, and therefore was not really into it. However, it was slightly better than I thought it would be. I think I liked her style. And the subject matter picked up a bit when she found out her husband was having an affair. But I was disappointed that she eventually decided to stay with him and he just seemed like an idiotic twit. 2 stars

The Two Minute Rule by Robert Crais

Standard who dunnit, this time with corrupt cops thrown in the mix. On the day that Max Holman gets out of jail, he finds out his long lost son was murdered. The book is a quest for him to find the truth about why his son (an LAPD cop) was killed, despite no one wanting to give him answers. A good book, I finished it quickly. 3 stars