ROAD TRIP 2011 / Connie & Roy's Excellent Adventure!

We always seem to fly whenever we go anywhere...but this time we decided to take a road trip.  Well, actually, I decided we would take a road trip.  Connie still preferred to fly but I loaded her Ipad with 7 movies, gave her my noise cancelling headphones and off we went.  The 11 day itinerary took in Atlanta, Asheville, Baltimore, DC, and Savannah.

First to Atlanta.  We hadn't seen my Dad all Summer, my brother promised to get Georgia Football tickets and we had a wedding to go to.  The added bonus was Lisa joining us for a couple of days and visits with my brothers and sisters-in-law.  I always threatened my kids that if I ever drive to their house, then I would bring as much of their "stuff" that we have been storing for years.  So, I loaded up the Prius with Brad's Sports memorabilia and other assorted goodies, a five foot teddy bear for Elie and barely had enough room for our luggage.  An hour or so out of Boca, the traffic on the Florida turnpike came to a halt...a car on fire stopped all traffic for about an hour - what a way to start a road trip!  We arrived at my Dad's in Atlanta and had just enough time to drop our luggage and head to brother Jan and Heidi's for dinner.  It was great to see Melissa, Alan and Barbara , too!  The Scotch was great, the food delish and the company engaging.  After the long drive and fulfilling drink and food, the bed was beckoning.  But Lisa's plane from Denver was late and after driving to the airport, bedtime was moved to 1 AM!

Saturday, our morning walk meandered through Buckhead and Brookhaven before culminating in breakfast at the Flying Biscuit.  With high hopes, Jan picked me up to go downtown for the Georgia- Boise State Football Game!  What a scene....parties all over downtown, tailgating, music at Olympic Park, drinks at the CNN Center and a lousy football game in the Georgia Dome!!  It's going to be another long season.  On Sunday, Connie, Lisa and I took a walk at Chastain Park and got a charge out of the number of people that recognized us.  After 28 years being away from Atlanta, it was fun to be recognized by old classmates and friends on at least 3 occasions during the walk!  The wedding of our friend's daughter was Sunday night and although we knew very few people, it was a fun time.

On Monday, after dropping Lisa at the airport, we were off to Asheville, NC.  We had always heard about Asheville's charm and decided to spend one night there.  The drive was beautiful as we meandered through North Georgia, South Carolina and the Mountains of North Carolina.  But that is where the rains from the recent tropical storm caught up with us.  After checking into the hotel, we wandered around the Biltmore Village, walked to dinner just ahead of the heavy rains and didn't get to see much of Asheville.  The next morning we had a sumptuous breakfast at the Tupelo Honey Cafe, took a short stroll around town and headed out for Baltimore.

After more rain, we finally arrived in Baltimore. Our beautiful grandson, Elie, was waiting with Brad on the front porch and the thrill of him reaching out for us was worth every mile driven so far!  I'm not sure of when we did what in Baltimore, because all of my attention was focused on spending as much time as possible with little Elie...and I was not disappointed.  There is nothing better than being awakened early in the morning by his smiling face as he gets in bed with me and Grams for early morning playtime.  It had been over 3 months since we saw him in person and the change was incredible.  Elie has developed his own little personality and except for the fact that he doesn't sleep very much, I think he is damn near perfect!  I am convinced, though, that his short naps and lack of sleep throughout the night is because he is afraid he might be missing out on the fun if he sleeps too long. 

Nonetheless, we stayed busy in Baltimore.  Just spending time with Brad, Claire and Elie was enough for me, but we did manage to stay busy with a trip to the Children's Museum, The Inner Harbor, walks, and shopping.  I found out that Elie loves to ride in the shopping cart and he is definitely a chick magnet as he flirts with everybody.  Sunday came too soon, as it was time for Saba and Grams to leave.

A quick trip Sunday morning to DC to see the MLK Memorial and The FDR Memorial - both too new for us to have seen before.  We didn't do our homework, though, as the National Triathlon/Duathlon was being held in DC with the Mall being the finish line.  It made things a little hectic, but we were able to see the impressive new monuments before attempting to leave town.  Being 9/11, the road leading to I-95 was bumper to bumper as all the roads around the Pentagon were shut down. 




On to Savannah as we meandered through Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and finally Georgia.  Arriving in the Savannah Historic District later on Sunday Evening, we had a quick snack and collapsed in the bed.  Monday morning we took a beautiful stroll through the cobblestone streets and heavily treed squares to a country breakfast.  On our walk, Connie was excited to stumble upon the First Girl Scout Headquarters....the very place she visited on her last trip to Savannah some 50 years ago.  We couldn't help but notice that Southern Hospitality and general friendliness is alive in Savannah.  How refreshing to be greeted with hearty "Good Morning's!" as we made our way through the streets. Nothing like the South and the people that live there!  (And for those of you that thinks South Florida is the South...wrong! It's more like New York than the South)

So, we headed home.  About 80 miles from home, we ran into one of those famous Florida thunderstorms that made driving impossible - so I actually pulled off the interstate and waited it out.  That is something I can't ever remember doing before.  Arriving home Monday night, we had travelled through 7 states and DC, driven 2542 miles, and according to the computer on the Prius achieved 46.1 miles per gallon at an average speed of 59 mile per hour.  (I know I was really averaging about 75 mph on the highway but the computer takes into account all of the driving.)  I guess it is time to start planning the next road trip...maybe out west next time and then I can deliver all of Lisa's "stuff" to her.  Something tells me, though, that I might be driving alone and Connie will fly to wherever I am.

And The Journey continues.............

Random Summertime Musings

It has been a month since I submitted my last Blog posting and I have had a hard time coming up with a worthwhile summertime subject to write about.  It has been a Summer of Washington lunacy, stock market craziness, Casey Anthony mania and unusually hot weather.

The Summer of Washington lunacy has been particularly appalling.  We have a Congress that is made up of a bunch of children that do not understand the spirit of our Constitution.  If nothing else, our government was set up to encourage compromise among the disparate viewpoints that proliferate the landscape.  However, what we have now is the lunatic fringe elements holding the government hostage because they are more interested in pushing their own agendas rather than figuring out what is best for our Country.  Why do these same people continue to want policy that has failed over and over again? 

In all of my business dealings, I have learned that a business cannot be brought to profitability simply by cutting expenses.  Increased revenues are absolutely necessary to balance the decreased spending.  Recent polling shows that the majority of Americans agree with this and want to see tax reform.  BUT, The Tea Party's fierce opposition of anything with the word "taxes" attached to it is putting the future of our country at great risk.  Why do we accept a system that continues to provide the Oil Companies with massive assistance, companies such as GE with a tax rate lower than people making $50,000 a year, and billionaires paying less taxes than their secretaries?   By the way, the Republican God, Ronald Reagan, even raised taxes....does that make him Satan?

The Bush-era tax cuts have added $1.7 trillion to our current debt and the bogus wars we engaged in have added $1.3 trillion.   These two items are greater than the debt caused by Social Security and Medicare Part D combined!  However, the Tea Party wants to concentrate on the $16 billion TARP (which we will actually profit from), Social Security (which all of us have paid into for our entire lives) and Medicare.  Our Defense spending now exceeds all of the other countries in the world combined!!  Something tells me that this is unnecessary - but the military-industrial complex can't let this be cut. Tsk, Tsk.  When will somebody stand up for the middle class?  If there is no growth for the middle class, then there is no growth for the USA.

The leadership void in our nation is frightening.  Mr. Obama has shown a lack of backbone in standing up to the various factions and the GOP has yet to put forth anyone that shows any leadership ability.  The present Republican hopefuls, Mitt, Tim and Michelle have all been quick to blame the mess on Barack but have offered no solutions.  The onus remains on these candidates to explain SPECIFICALLY, how each would change Washington and spur job growth.  So far, none of them have offered anything but criticism and blame - if they have a plan to change Washington and encourage job growth, they have done a good job of hiding it.  Wake up, America, these candidates will SAY anything to get elected, but what they say doesn't equal their past actions.  All one has to do is look at Mitt's record on job outsourcing or Michelle's grab of stimulus money to understand this point. These are serious times and so far, no one has shown that they have serious ideas and plans to lead us.

Which brings me to the Casey Anthony trial.  Get over it!!  Yes, we all know she is guilty of, at the very least, neglect that led to her child's death..or at the most, cold, premeditated murder.  But, the prosecution did not prove any of this.  That's our system - innocent until proven guilty.  Yep, I am sorry for the little girl too, but all of the protesting, memorial building and angst over the verdict will not bring her back.  And, I would rather have a system like ours than any other one...it's not perfect, but it is better than the alternatives.

This hot weather is making me weary...so, that's it for now! 

And The Journey continues..................

Liars, Hypocrites and Other Famous People

hy-poc-ri-sy  n. pl. -sies  1. The practice of professing beliefs, feelings or virtues that one does not hold or posess; insincerity.hyp-o-crite n.  A person given to hypocrisy
lie n.  1.  A false statement deliberately presented as being true; a falsehood. 2.  Something meant to deceive or give a wrong impression.  v.  1. To present false information with the intention of deceiving.  2.  To convey a false image or impression.

I thought that one could find a picture of several people in the news next to the words that are defined above...but I looked in several dictionaries and could only find the definitions.  But, that doesn't make my disgust with liars and hypocrites any less severe.

Recent revelations from THE Ohio State University finally exposed one of the great hypocrites of all time...Coach Jim Tressel.  Coach Tressel professes to be a man of great moral and ethical beliefs whose great mission in life is to lead the impressionable on the righteous path of life....yea, right!  Instead he is a liar, cheat and world class hypocrite who's sole mission in life is to win.  Now, I don't have a problem with someone being driven to be a winner, but don't hold yourself up as a model of morality while you are cheating.  But, then again, Coach Tressel was a cheater at his last job, so no one should have expected anything different from him at Ohio State.

Unfortunately, hypocrisy has become the rule of our land.  Politicians after politician have perfected the art of hypocrisy.  Some Republicans say that they BELIEVE in small government and no government intrusion into the private lives of citizens.  Yet, they want to force their religious beliefs onto all people by trying to outlaw a woman's right to choose and to vote against individual equal rights for those that don't share their belief that homosexuality is a crime.   We have had members of Congress who have pushed for tough child abuse laws while they are soliciting underage children and pundits (Rush) who preach against the evils of drugs while abusing prescription pain killers.  And there have been numerous cases of religious leaders who advocate one set of moral values while practicing the opposite.  I am no longer surprised when another public figure is exposed for being a liar and hypocrite.

Just yesterday, teachers and administrators in The Atlanta School System were found to have cheated and perpetuated cheating on standardized tests.  These are the same teachers that are suppose to be teaching our youth the values of honesty and integrity.  When did the pervading rule become "Do as I say, not as I do?"  In too many cases, parents defend the lies of their children.  What will become of our society if we accept lies and hypocrisy when it is more convenient than telling the truth?

Is it any wonder that Casey Anthony believed she could get away with murder by simply telling lie after lie?  How sad that we have come to that.

Ant The Journey continues...........................

REFLECTIONS ON TURNING 60....WHAT I KNOW FOR SURE

I turned 60 last week.  It wasn't quite as traumatic as I expected.  I feel the same as I did when I was 59.  But, 60 is a great age to reflect...some would even say that one that has reached 6 decades has the right to pontificate and speak with pompous authority.  So, since I did not do anything else significant to celebrate my milestone birthday, I am allowing myself the indulgence of writing (primarily for my grandson, Elie) these 21 Things I Know For Sure.

1.  Life will not always go the way you want it.  Deal with it!

2.  Stop trying to be perfect.  It will make you crazy and nobody even cares if you are perfect.

3.  If my dog doesn't like someone, I probably shouldn't either.

4.  You will regret the things you haven't done more than those you have.

5.  Do what you love....Love what you do....And be passionate about what you are doing!

6.  No one can change what has already happened.  Whatever is done is done and it is up to us whether we use the experience to learn.

7.  A home filled with music is a happy home.

8.  If you have an opinion or make a choice that is diametrically opposed to what most others think, the world will not end!  Be an independent thinker.

9.  True friends (ones that will go to the end of the earth for you and vice versa) are hard to come by and are quite few....so treasure them.  The rest are merely acquaintances.

10.  A good friend will bail you out of jail.  A great, true friend will be sitting next to you in the cell saying, "Damn, that was fun!"

11.  There will never be peace until everybody recognizes everybody else as their equal.  Prejudice, racism, bias and hate are the root of all evil.

12.  Focusing on the positive always trumps dwelling on the negative.

13.  This too, will pass!

14.  If you don't believe in yourself, no one else will.

15.  You are only as happy as your most unhappy child.

16.  Blood IS thicker than water.  Never underestimate the Power of Family.

17.  Grandchildren are your reward for raising great children.

18.  Love DOES conquer all!

19.  It is okay to cry.  Whether it is tears of joy, pride, or even sadness, tears only show that we are human feeling beings.  Crying is NOT a show of weakness.

20.  We are responsible for our own life.  And nobody else is.  There are those that assist us along the path but our success can never be left to anyone else.

21.  Life is short.  We should DO IT NOW!

And The Journey continues..........

Customer Service? Not anymore!

Since most of my career has been spent in the Retail business, I have some idea of what makes up good customer service.  The most important element of any seller-buyer relationship is communication...and since the seller is trying to sell and the buyer doesn't have to buy, the most important thing a seller can do is listen!  And once they have listened, it is up to the seller to, at least, address the concerns and needs of the buyer/customer.  Lately, I have found that the art of customer service is, for the most part, dead.

Sure, there are exceptions to this.  I have run across retailers, like Nordstrom's, that generally treat the customer with respect and honesty - they seem to embrace the concept of the customer always being right.  Others??  Not so much.....  There are retailers that think every customer is trying to rip them off and treat them that way...there are service companies that don't timely keep their appointments and there are restaurants that have no clue how to treat a customer.  I have had people make business appointments with me and just not show up - no calls, no excuses...just rudeness!

So, why do I feel compelled to write this now?  I have just come from shopping for an auto lease...and with the exception of one dealer (my friend), was constantly treated as if I am a total idiot and literally told that I needed to do business THEIR way!  I started off each session with the same instructions:  1. I know what I want.  2. I don't want to drive the car  3. I want to deal with the Sales Manager directly, because I don't have the patience nor the time to "play the game."  4. Do you have the car or can you get it and  5.What are the costs and terms for a 3 year lease?  I also tell them they have one shot at me, so make it there best shot.  I don't think I am being unreasonable, just thrifty with my time.

It amazes me that 3 of the dealers refused to even acknowledge what I laid out for them and started the meeting with "Let's go for a test drive."  When I refused, one of them told me that he couldn't quote me then!  Another one kept running back and forth to their manager and left me sitting at a desk for 30 minutes.  The third one kind of got what I was saying but said his sales manager wouldn't let him vary from their standard operating procedure....and until I got insistant would not even ask the sales manager to speak with me....and when he did finally come over to me, was rude and out of line.  Oh, and did I mention that the first one was the dealer I had leased the last car from and had been calling me daily to get me to come in for a new car?

I think a no hassle, let's do it the customer's way dealer would be a smash hit in just about any market.  I know that I would go out of my way to give him my business and recommend him to everybody!  Since the lease on the old car is up next week, I still need to do something.....My options come down to getting a car from my friend in West Palm Beach - which would be great if he sold the models Connie wants or get the car from a family member's dealership in Miami or give Connie my car and just start walking or bicycling everywhere!  Even that would be better than having to deal with this any longer!

And The Journey continues.......

Where Have All The Leaders Gone?

In the song, "Where Have All The Flowers Gone," the final verse asks, "when will we ever learn, when will we ever learn?"  The same can be said about our so-called national leaders and the disgusting public discourse of the day.  And although I lean to the left, I am talking about the void of real leaders on both sides of the aisle.  If there is one thing I can't stand in our supposed leaders,  it is hypocrisy...the other is utter stupidity.  Let's look at some of those "leaders"..........

First there is the joke of the day...Donald Trump!    Mr. Trump is deciding whether to run for President.  Just what we need, ANOTHER reality TV star polluting the landscape.   In 1987, Mr. Trump ran a full page advertisement in several newspapers criticizing the political establishment, then run by Ronald Reagan, stating "The World is laughing at America's politicians" and endorsing the Reform Party's book of policy which included an embrace of single-payer health care and plans for a one-time 14.25% net-worth tax on all Americans worth more than $10 million....the revenue would pay off the national debt!  Today, he says he is more serious than ever before yet his rhetoric revolves around the veracity of Obama's Birth Certificate, which has been verified by the State of Hawaii and a copy of which was shown last week on ABC News.  He goes on to claim that Obama's book, Dreams of My Father was secretly written by '60's radical, Bill Ayers.  But let's face it, all of these make for great sound bites and the American people don't really have the intelligence to go beyond sound bites.

Then there are those other Republican Presidential hopefuls....Sarah Palin and Sarah Palin redux, Michelle Bachman.  Together they have not put together a single idea or proposal that will help this country.  All they do is spout fear and negatives without so much as a single intelligent idea between the two of them.  Sarah won't run, though...she would have to take too much of a pay cut from her reality show and speaking engagements...but Michelle is ready to rock with some of her best selling lines:  "Not all cultures are created equal;" "I find it interesting that the swine flu broke out under another Democratic President, Jimmy Carter.  And I'm not blaming this on Obama, I just think it is an interesting coincidence;" "Gay marriage is probably the biggest issue that is impacting our State and our Nation in the last 30 years. I am not understating that:"  "If we took away the minimum wage- if conceivably it was gone-we could potentially virtually wipe out unemployment because we would be able to offer jobs at whatever level;" and my favorite..."And what a bizarre time we are in when a judge will say to little children  that you can't say the Pledge of Allegiance but you must learn that homosexuality is normal and you should try it." 

The there is Newt Gingrich...was Newt the one Alan Simpson, former Republican Senator from Wyoming was referring to when he said, "You're diddling your secretary while you're giving a speech on moral values?  Come on. Get off of it.   Senator Simpson also said of his Republican cohorts: "I'm not sticking with people who are homophobic, antiwomen."

Finally, there is the case of Mitt Romney.  I have had the pleasure of being a business associate of Mitt's.  I have often told others that Mitt is one of the smartest, most intellectually curious people that I have ever been around.  All of my business dealings with Mitt were marked with the highest degree of integrity and that has resulted in a high dose of respect for Mitt.   HOWEVER, I can't reconcile his bevy of altered positions on important issues.  He was pro-choice and anti-gun in order to get elected as Governor of Massachusetts.  His Massachusetts universal health care program complete with a mandate that individuals purchase insurance was signed into law by him in April, 2006.   I almost could have supported that Mitt...socially progressive yet fiscally conservative.  Now, in order to appeal to the base of the Republican Party, he has changed his stance on these and other social issues...which only goes to prove that Mitt will say anything to get elected, and for that, my respect for Mitt as a leader has all but disappeared.

And the Democratic side of the ledger is void of leaders too.  Nancy Pelosi?  What a joke.  Nancy is the one who said  "We have to pass the Health Care Bill so we can find out what's in it;" duh...aren't you suppose to know what's in it before you vote on it?  And one of my all time favorites:  "I believe in natural gas as a clean, cheap alternative to fossil fuels."  Hmmmm...I know that I am not the smartest guy in the world, but even I know that natural gas is a fossil fuel!  Sorry, Nancy, your 15 minutes are up...you are a dishonest political hack!

Joe Biden?  He is embracing the long-standing tradition of the Vice-President being totally irrelevant.  Are you still breathing, Joe?

I had high hopes for Barack Obama.  I believe him to be intelligent and that he truly wants to do what's right.  However, a leader?  Not so much.  A leader knows how to gain consensus...knows how to be decisive...knows the art of compromise...knows how to instill confidence in the people.  Mr. Obama has not demonstrated any of this. 

I think New York City Mayor, Michael Bloomberg shares my disgust for uber-partisan politics when he asked:  "When did success become a bad word in America?  When did coopertion of government become treason?  The new 'politics as usual' is making a mockery of our democracy and a mess of our country?"   Who is responsible for this mockery?  The Republicans?  Yes!  The Democrats?  Yes! The Tea Party? Yes! Yes!   Republican President, Dwight D. Eisenhower understood compromise:  "People talk about the middle of the road as though it were unacceptable.  Actually, all human problems, excepting morals, come into the gray area.  Things are not black and white.  There have to be compromises.....the middle of the road is all of the usable surface.  The extremes, right and left, are in the gutters."

When did we let the extreme fringes highjack our system of democracy?  In a recent editorial, former Republican Congressman, E. Clay Shaw said, "Democracy promotes and requires debate, but it is at its best when done with dignity and respect."  How do we, with a straight face, make an issue of Planned Parenthood funding (when it accounts for less than .00005% of our budget) a cause celebre for fiscal restraint instead of an attack on a woman's right to choose.  This was not a budget issue...it was a sound bite for the extreme right.  All the while we ignore the fact that our defense budget has more than doubled in 10 years and is now larger than the rest of the world's military budgets COMBINED.  Want to reduce spending?  End the wars that we should never have been a part of,  reduce global presence, cut the 17 intelligence agencies to just 2 or 3, quit funding unneeded equipment like the $400 billion being spent on F-35 fighters in Mr. Boehner's district and go after the big wastes in the budget.  But this won't happen, because the Military-Industrial complex is running the show!  And if any politician is really honest, then they will admit that we can't solve our debt problem by cost reduction only.  They all know that revenue also has to increase in order to reduce the deficit...but, tax increases or at the very least, tax reform, is a sound bite that spells trouble in getting themselves re-elected!

Years ago, I was fortunate to hear a speech by General Norman Schwarzkopf in which he told the story of his first tour of duty at the Pentagon.  He was a young officer assigned to one of the Generals and arrived for his first day of work as the General was leaving for an extended vacation.  As the General was leaving, he instructed his young aide in the tasks that needed to be completed before he returned.  Schwarzkopf had never done any of the things that were being asked of him, so he asked the General what he should do.  The General replied, "Do what's right" and Schwarzkopf kept those instructions at the heart of all his decisions going forward.   The problem with our so-called leaders is that they that they don't have the courage to DO WHAT'S RIGHT.  They only say and do what will give them the best sound bite that will further their political ambitions.

Where have all the leader's gone?  When will a real leader step forward and have the courage to do what's right? 

And The Journey continues...............................


**Footnote:  Some of the quotes came from an essay by John P. Hart, "Dialogues for civility in politics, government" in The Sun Sentinel, 4/24/2011

Dieting for Dummies

How come it is so easy to gain weight but so hard to take it off?  I have been on a diet for at least half of my life.   My best estimate of weight gained and lost over my lifetime is close to a thousand pounds.  It seems that it takes about 5 times longer to lose weight than it does to gain...and the older we get, the harder it is to lose. 

Over my lifetime, I have been on just about every diet imaginable...and they all work to some degree.  What they don't do is ingrain the idea of maintaining weight into our pleasure seeking, feeble minds!  To date, I have participated in the following:  Stillman's Water Diet, The Grapefruit Diet, NutriSystems, The South Beach Diet, The Zone diet, The 14 day Diet, the 10 Day Diet, Phen-Fen, Dr. "Feelgood's" Magic pills, Atkins high protein-low carb Diet, The Cookie Diet, A Nutritionist's Diet, Weight Watcher's, The Juice Fast, The Fast Fast and finally, Jenny Craig.  (I am sure that I have left some out!)  I have lost 40 to 50 pounds more times than I can count. 

We all know that exercise plays a major part in losing weight.  But recently there was a published report that concluded that too much exercise contributes to weight gain.  The theory is that with exercise, the body craves more calories so we overeat.  Then there are those that say that to lose weight you should increase your cardio exercise and not do any strength training.  Others say that the key is strength training and one should decrease cardio work. What is the right formula?  I guess if you break it down to its simplest form, the answer is to consume less calories than you burn each day.  But it is never a level playing field...if you have high metabolism, then you burn more calories during the normal course of your day...but I must have the metabolism of a turtle!!  I exercise everyday more than almost anybody I know and do not grossly overeat...you'd think I would not have a weight problem!   Must be the genes!!

Somone once said to me that they eat to live and I live to eat...not exactly true but I do love food.  I love gourmet food, I love good food, and I love crummy, bad for you food like diner fare, southern fried delicasies and other assorted goodies.  That doesn't mean I only eat that stuff.  I eat plenty of salads, veggies, fruit, fish, skinless chicken, ground turkey instead of beef, whole grains and the like....but it almost seems like it doen't matter what I eat.  And it seems to me that I eat about half the quantity that I ate as a much younger person.  But I still fight the weight problem everyday!

Presently, I am back on The Jenny Craig program....or what I call Dieting for Dummies.  Eat what they tell you to and you will lose weight.  It's when I start to make substitutions that things get tough.  For instance, an ounce of Scotch equals 2 fats...so I have to figure out what to cut out to accomodate an evening Scotch!  Do I miss the good stuff?  You bet...but the goal is back in sight and I will be back to High School Playing weight by my birthday!   And then I will eat whatever I damn well please ....so I can start the cycle all over again!

And The Journey continues....................................