I wouldn't be doing this past week justice if I didn't talk about the food. Such wonderful specialties and old time favorites were eaten in the name of the holidays. You ask, but aren't you on a diet? I reply, no we aren't. We are eating healthy and exercising. In doing so, we've both lost weight and gotten in better shape. However, we are simply leading a healthy lifestyle which includes occasional splurging on tasty treats guilt free. Since we aren't on a diet plan, there is no cheating. All the better for us, because Thanksgiving included some can't-miss delights. The first noteworthy meal was not a traditional American Thanksgiving meal, but a lunch out for Japanese food. Christopher ordered maguro nigiri and tekkamaki, and I ordered a lunch bento that included teriyaki salmon, edamame, steamed veggies, rice, and miso soup.

As you can see, delicious! The fish was very fresh, well cut, and constructed beautifully. I didn't take a photo, but my bento was equally stunning in a pretty bento box-style dish. Bringing the cuisine back stateside, the next meal stayed in the realm of seafood. We were beckoned by the host of a restaurant to try crab as it was the first week of harvest. Oh man, so good. Normally, I would not go for crab at a restaurant because of the price and the work involved. I generally don't like my meals messy. However, the price was right due to the harvest specials and the mess was more than worth it. The meal was started with a savory yet creamy cup of clam chowder. This was accompanied by the best sourdough I've ever tasted. And of course, the crab was the star of the show. What's Thanksgiving without a casserole or two? The last food-foto I took was of my mom's stellar breakfast casserole. This year she really knocked it out of the park. It's always good, but something about this one was a chart-topper. The casserole includes eggs, cheese, bread, and sausage with a few other ingredients rounding it out. I took the photo while the casserole was still bubbling immediately out of the oven. It rested a little bit before we enjoyed its offerings with our morning coffee. And of course, what I'm remembering now are numerous other candid food moments that I neglected to catch on "film" to record in our Thanksgiving memories. There was the breakfast burrito, the Happy Chopped Salad, the baked sweet potatoes, the pumpkin spice lattés, the crèpes, and oh the cake! We were lucky to have a week to cover all that ground and not only one day.

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I had my follow up appointment with the specialist after having had the NCS on my wrist. My appointment was at 3:30pm. I arrived at about 3:20pm. They didn't call me until 4:05pm, so I spent a good amount of time with a book in the waiting room ignoring the chatter of small children (2) who were there with their parents. Luckily, I remembered to bring the book; otherwise, I might have been bored for my 45 minute wait.

The nurse took me back and took my blood pressure. He asked if I had low blood pressure. I told him it was usually the low side of normal. I said that's I'd just spent a relaxing 45 minutes reading a book and that could explain the low blood pressure. He seemed to think that was funny.

Talking with the doctor, it seems I have nueropraxia. There was latency in the amount of time it took the electric signal to reach the nodes in my finger tips, and this is what confirms the diagnosis. Basically, the nerve has been smushed. It can be done through athletics, which I did a lot of growing up. Also, the icing on the cake would be when I fell directly onto the outer part of my wrist. I did this while running and on concrete. Definitely enough to smush my nerve.

I had gotten a wrist brace to wear to as not to agitate the situation, thinking it might be carpal tunnel (see previous post). However, per the doctor's orders, I'm not to wear it at all, and I should do my activities as normal. Instead, I am supposed to massage the site with vitamin E (I bought d-alpha vitamin E softgels), and use a stress ball to strengthen the muscles around the nerve. Doing so will help the nerve regrow/heal as much as it can.

So, there you have it. The case of the tingling hand solved.

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First, my dog just ate something off the side of my ottoman. What is was or why it was there, I have no idea. I'm actually hoping it was a crumb of some kind that had managed to stick in that particular spot, because at least then it would be food. However, this is not the point of this post. A while back I posted that I thought I may be seeing some early signs of Carpal Tunnel. I went to the specialist for an appointment and was referred out to a testing center where they could perform a Nerve Conduction Study (NCS).

When the doctor told me he was sending me out for this, I replied, "Is that with electrodes?" He said it was. Me, "Oh, that sounds cool." Him, "Actually it's painful." So, I went expecting pain. The first thing the technician said was not to worry about pain, because it wasn't anything other than a little zap. He thought it was strange my doc told me it was painful. There is a more painful test that involves sticking needles in your arm (an EMG), but I didn't have to have that done.

The technician started by drawing little dots on my arm with Sharpie and putting some goo on the end of the zapper. I'm absolutely positive there are technical names for these things, but why use them when there are awesome words like "goo" and "zapper" that work just as well?

He then proceeded to zap my arm multiple times. In some cases it was just one zap, and in others it was 10 zaps in a row. In every case, my hand spasmed uncontrollably. As this was happening, a graph appeared on the computer screen that was the product of the zaps. Apparently, the doctors will look for variation in the amount of time it takes the electrical current to reach the receiving pads that are stuck on the fingers/palm from the point of entry (marked in Sharpie on my arm). Also as this was happening, my reaction of choice was to laugh. I really couldn't help it, since my hand was moving without my commanding it to do so; it seemed funny. I think the technician preferred this reaction to patients who are completely anxious and make the testing difficult. It definitely didn't tickle, it was in fact painful - just not enough to worry about. It was maybe a 1 or a 2 in some cases on a pain scale of 10. And, the zaps were so short, they were over by the time the pain registered anyway.

I have no idea if I passed or failed this test. I'll find out when I go back to the doctor and hear his interpretation of the results.

In other news, Renn's dental appointment went well. The poor thing came home and literally grumbled for the rest of the day. I'm talking the full day from the time he got home until the time we went to bed. He had pain killer and antibiotics for the scaling that had been done. The pain killer really seemed to sedate him and pretty much knock him out. He's finally completed all that medication, and he only has two more doses of antibiotic left. He has a little shaved patch of hair on his arm from where they put the IV. He wasn't his usual attractive and charming self at Barktober Fest the next day. But I ran that event by the vet before taking him. She didn't have a problem with it.

Barktober Fest was lots of fun :) Renn got to see Paisley and hang out. We walked around the booths and participated in the walk around the lake. It wasn't all that cold, but it was rainy off and on. We arrived just before noon. At 1:18pm, the emcee came over the loud speaker and let everyone know there was a tornado warning. That pretty much ended the show. All people and doggies headed for their cars. As I was sitting in line to get out of the parking lot, the downpour came. An hour and 15 minutes was not a bad amount of time to spend there, so I'm glad I went. It was just somewhat of an abrupt ending. Also, while we were there, we saw a little doggie for adoption. (There were lots of little doggies for adoption, but this one called out to me). He'd been in an accident but was saved by the Frisco Humane Society. He had pretty bad road rash, but was in the latter stages of recovery. Such a cutie, medium sized mix with grey/white hair, face of a terrier. We're ok being a one dog family for now, but he'll make some family very happy.

As for Halloween, I have no plans for the day of. However, I will be dressing up for work tomorrow. I'm going as the bride from Kill Bill. I'm really only half-dressing up though, because the pants of the costume that I have are tight and would make me feel uncomfortable at work. So, on bottom I'll be wearing jeans, but on top I'll be wearing a bright yellow jacket with black stripes down each arm. I'll also carry a staff, because swords are HR inappropriate. Happy Halloween!

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Since the daily high is out of the 90s, seemingly for good, it appears that fall is here. Or at least what Texans can call fall. I'm very cold when I walk Renn in the mornings; so, I started wearing my track pants and hoodie. By the afternoon, I'm in a t-shirt again. I don't really mind changing a lot during the day, but it does mean I have more laundry to do at the end of the week. Anyway, the point is that seasons are changing and I'm looking forward to what the rest of the year has to offer.

Renn will be the center of attention over the next week. On Friday, he's got an appointment at the vet for his physical, heartworm screening, vaccination update, and dental work. Poor little guy. He'll have to stay at the vet all day since they give little doggies anesthesia for dental work. Makes sense, otherwise they wouldn't sit still long enough. It's only through sheer will power that I sit still long enough when I'm in the dentist's chair. Then Saturday, BARKTOBER FEST!!!! I'm so excited. Renn will get to hang out with his friend Paisley for most of the day (or at least a couple of hours), and I'll get to walk around the booths and see what's going on in this little shindig. Emma may or may not also make an appearance. It should be tons of fun.

At work, we'll have a new training class at the end of the month as well, which is good for me because I like being busy, and it's definitely one of the more fun aspects of my job. Also in October, a friend's birthday, which should be good times.

In November, we're headed to California for Thanksgiving. We've rented a car and will make a short road trip out of the first two or three days before spending the rest of the time with family. I love road trips with my husband! And family time is good too since we haven't spent a long holiday with them in a couple of years. I think...it certainly feels like a long time. I'm sure we'll also spend some time with family here in Texas at some point. Not to mention, we've been pretty good about heading out to new restaurants with friends every two or three weeks. I've been enjoying going out. Which reminds me, last week we went to Mr. Sushi in Addison for drinks (plum wine, mmmmmmm) before dinner at the Thai Orchid a few doors down with a friend. It was such a fun night. I can't wait for a repeat performance.

And, of course there's December. I have days off from work sprinkled in the month. I like having 4-day work weeks. Who doesn't?

So all in all, the rest of the year is shaping up to be fantastic! Now.. what to do this weekend.... ;)

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This is just a repost from my favorite blogging personal trainer. A little motivation for your weekend. Original found here.

"The average American is overweight, has no college degree, makes about 32,000 per year, will go through at least one divorce, and will not live past the age of 78. Death will probably come by way of heart disease. Now why would you want to be simply average? Don’t be a “C student” when it comes to your life and your health. You can continue to make excuses, but that doesn’t change the consequence. Embrace the popular slogan and “just do it.” You won’t necessarily “feel like it” until you’ve been at it for a while. But don’t worry, the feelings with follow soon. Believe it or not, you will eventually enjoy not only the benefits of being healthy but also the process! Just remember it will take a little time."

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About a month ago or so, we were invited by a friend to join her and her team from her company to walk a 5K in downtown Dallas. It was a charity event put on by the American Heart Association and in support of sufferers of stroke and heart disease.

We pretty quickly decided we'd join her. It was an especially easy decision, because furry four-legged family members were allowed! This was the most exciting part, for me. Renn has been on long walks with me before. Generally, we go for a 30 to 45 minutes walk once a day unless the weather doesn't allow. And on the weekends, we'd recently been going for walks of up to 1 hour and 15 minutes, so I knew he could handle the 5K.

We registered for the walk two days beforehand (my fault since the email clearly said to pre-register, but I'd completely overlooked that part until almost the day of the walk). And we set up a meeting time with our friend at her place, which is located very near where the walk was to begin. She also has a dog that she was bringing. Her dog and Renn had already met at the dog park and gotten along famously.

The walk itself was very slow moving at first. Hundreds of people filing down the road (next to the W hotel) on our way winding through downtown. After the first couple turns, though, the crown thinned out a bit and the walking wasn't so slow and smushed. It was neat to walk around the streets of downtown. I'd only ever been in a car and driven to my destination. I'd never walked around in that way, so I really appreciated the opportunity to see the city from a different perspective.

We finished the walk in just over an hour, I don't remember exactly how long it took. We were pretty hot and sweaty, but luckily it was overcast that day, so it definitely could have been worse. After the walk, we went back to our friend's place and believe it or not her little doggie was ready to play with minimal recovery time. She's so cute! Renn, a bit older than her, wanted to join the playtime as well, but he was moving at a noticeably slower pace than his puppy pal.

Overall, we had a great time participating in an event for a good cause, and we got some outdoor exercise while we were at it. Not bad for a Saturday morning.

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In my (apparently very domestic and I suppose boring to some) married life, I have become more and more enamored with cooking and cooking related topics and hobbies. One of my favorite things to do is to go grocery shopping. Mostly because we do this activity as a couple and have fun together as we trod through the aisles. Recently, our local Kroger has been remodeling. A process that seems almost complete as of yesterday when Christopher and I went for our weekly shopping trip.

Grocery shopping is a pretty organized affair, I make a list during the week of the things we run out of and stock up on fresh veg and fruit each weekend. The remodel has made an old store new, and it's very lovely as far as grocery stores go. The old corner section of organic food has turned into a beauty and health care section. The organic food has taken a more prominent place near the produce. And the bakery/deli areas seem to have expanded with a new cheese display and large olive and salad bar.

I use the deliciousness that I buy there to make even more deliciousness at home. Recently, I've taken up stir fry. A bit difficult since I don't have a wok and my largest pan is not that large. But I make it work, very carefully. My stir fry usually includes cabbage, bok choy, broccoli, carrots, and chicken. mmmmmmm.

Another new favorite is twice baked potatoes with a hot chili pepper sour cream sauce. The recipe includes butter, cheese, scallions, milk, salt/pepper, and something else I can't seem to remember. It's a bit long in cooking (baking potatoes takes about an hour or so), but totally worth the wait when it's done.

And, of course, Christopher fires up the grill regularly, usually multiple times a week. I'd pick his burger over a restaurant burger any day of the week. He's also gotten very good at glazed grilled chicken, fajita chicken, steak, and grilled salmon.

Not to brag, but I love dinner at my house!

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In a recent trip to the library - man, I love the library - I decided I wanted to find something from the non-fiction section to keep me entertained and interested on the weekends. As you can tell from the food posts, I'm very interested in healthy living. So, this is the area where I went to choose my books. I picked up The Hundred-Year Lie: How Food and Medicine are Destroying Your Health by Randall Fitzgerald.

Overall, I recommend this book. It is thorough, informative, and backed by dozens and dozens of reputable works cited. It is alarmist, no question; however, that is exactly the point the author is trying to make. And he succeeds.

Neither Christopher nor I have ever been just-take-a-pill kind of people. We both have to convince the other when it's time to go to the doctor. We both have to read up on the research available on the internet for the medication we are prescribed. We both have a general mistrust of medication. It was nice to read this book and have factual information back up our intuition. We will use prescriptions when necessary. However, what we will not do is go get antibiotics for every cold we may get when they will do absolutely nothing for our cold and create an environment for developing stronger bugs.

The main thesis of the book is that mankind is performing a chemical experiment on itself while blindly expecting objective government agencies to be its watchdog. Fitzgerald talks about the food industry quite a bit, but also takes his sword of choice to the pharmaceutical and medical industries as well as the bias, political agencies charged with regulating these. My one critique is that he uses a lot of animal testing to show how medications should have been pulled from shelves long before they were, but he then argues that animal testing is not a valid form of comparison to human reactions to chemicals. Granted that is a simplification of his statement. For more information on that, just read the book! ;)

What I like best about the book is (1) it's an interesting read with a relatively well organized structure (2) it uses recognizable evidence for its claims (3) it makes sense. I also can agree that, generally speaking, doctors and the community at large are too focused on finding one single chemical cure for a disease or one single cause for a symptom. Fitzgerald successfully discussing the hazard of such an approach and the benefit of looking at synergistic properties of drugs, foods, and environmental toxins. I also appreciate his nod to holistic medicine and traditional use of food as illness prevention.

I finished the book in one week, reading solidly only about two days. So it does not take a long time to get through its pages. If you're interested in this kind of thing, I'd say it's a great one to pick up.

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