Year 2, Day 31: Detecto Says "186!" (But Donna says "185")

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

Okay yes, it's here, the moment, where I can say that I have lost FORTY POUNDS. Even though I am not given to bouts of shameless back-patting, I will take a moment and say "Wow." Thirteen months, nearly to the day, and here I am, only a wisp of the man I used to be. I thought it would take a lot longer to get off the next ten pounds. You always hear people talk about the 'easy weight'. Like "oh, that first 30 pounds was the easy weight." I thought the next 10 would be ever so much more challenging. I stayed at about 196 for six months or so—but I was also starting to put a way a pint a day (of nuts). As long time readers know, in January, I started on Phase One again and lo and behold, here I am, three months later, 10lbs down. People are asking, "now what?" "Will you continue to diet?" The answer is of course, a resounding yes. I don't believe I have hit my absolute floor yet. I think I can get to somewhere in the 70s before I flatline it on ol' Detecto. Lastly, Donna told me to 'take off a pound for your clothes.' I haven't done that before, and I'm not going to start now, but I think it's safe to say that today is a milestone. Either that, or a tapeworm has run rampant inside me.

Breakfast
2 soft-boiled eggs
2 small slices Balthazar bread
2.5 oz 50% jalapeno cheddar
tea

Snack-EM
12 oz. Coffee (half decaf)
6 oz. Plain Yogurt
3 Tablespoons Peanut Butter (Super Chunky)

Lunch: Peter's Kitchen
Grilled Chicken Kebab Salad with Feta
1/2 Whole Wheat Pita
4 French Fries

Dinner
Turkey Meat Balls
Crispy Pork Cutlets
Sauteed Peppers
Salad (with Feta)

Dessert Especiale
Emily's Very Well Done Fried Plantains

Magnoliafood
Oatmeal
French Toast

Of course, one of the things that I am the most neurotic about is letting your lead slip away. Sort of a "Rabbit and Hare" neuroses, I don't want to relax with my new found svelteness and start eating the choco tacos and bowl after bowl of breakfast cereal—continually adding cereal to soak up the milk, and then adding more milk because there's too much dry cereal. Really, it's a cycle and it's best not to get into it. While looking for a picture of my favorite breakfast cereal (Captain Crunch Cinnamon Crunch–not the very inferior Cinnamon Toast Crunch) to post as a "what I would eat if I could eat whatever I wanted" I found a picture of my most favorite OTHER cereal from my youth (and there were many), called Kaboom. Anyone who knows me would know why I would have immediately responded to this cereal as a kid. It had a great name, was sold by a clown, and who could resist the boxes promise: "100% minimum daily requirements of vitamins and irons in 1 oz. SUGARY oat cereal with marshmallow stars!" As it was, I did celebrate by eating four french fries (fantastic); some fried plantains, some of Magnolia's oatmeal and a few bites of french toast I made. I think that's plenty of celebration.