Ebjournal Revisited.

In Which We Get Less Fat Update: Week One

Tony| Category: General, EAT, All about me, In Which We Get Less Fat | 2 Comments

After one week of fairly intensive workout (2 x 30 minutes, Mon-Sat., woo Spring Break!) and a week of mediocre eating (during the week I was fine, Fri. and Sat. I fell down a bit) the results of the Great Lose Weight Campaign of ‘08:

3 lbs.

I suppose I should be celebrating, but I felt like I worked out a lot more than 3 lbs.’ worth. There was a point (Friday/Saturday? morning) where I was down 6 lbs. (it was right after a workout and my morning business session, which I’m SURE you wanted to know…) and I tried to be fairly healthy. So this week, I’ll continue to workout (Monday, check. Wednesday, Thursday (with trainer), Friday (with trainer), Saturday and Sunday.) and try to be healthy. And that’s all I’ve got to say about that.

Thanks for all the support!

And Finally Tonight…

Tony| Category: General, EAT | 8 Comments

In my most worthless post of the evening, (which of course will get the most comments) McDonald’s is running their 49/59 cent cheap hamburger and cheeseburger day tomorrow (the 26th). At the risk of giving them free advertising, I’m telling you about this because if I suddenly become unresponsive to IM’s, texts, phone calls, or smoke signals, you’ll know that I actually managed to get one level nearer to nirvana through hedonisitc self-abuse of ‘limit five per visit” rule.  Per visit. Suckers.

I have a soft spot for the McD’s cheeseburger. I can’t help it. It doesn’t actually taste like a cheeseburger.

Check in with me tomorrow… let us see if I can resist the spawn of Ronald.

OhMyGod Steak: How Red Meat has Made Me Predictable, and Determined

Tony| Category: General, EAT | 3 Comments

Like it or not, married life has settled into predictability for me and TLEMK.  We enjoy the same television shows, similar books, she loves baseball and football like I do, and we make fun of a lot of people for the same reasons. (Though she judges more than I ). One particular tradition of excellence that she and I have maintained through our seven-year courtship is our fascination with meat. Yes, TLEMK is a red-meat kinda gal.  I thank her father for this, as he has actually had grill tongs surgically implanted into his right arm for ease-of-use. I enjoy red meat too, though I did not grow up with it, and I still don’t really like hamburgers all that much (McD’s cheeseburgers do not count, and IN n’ OUT is an exception to the rule. Mmm, exception…)  Nevertheless, I have discovered that a nice cut of cow flesh ranks way up there in celebration foods. Accordingly, TLEMK and I have this odd tradition of going to steak houses on our anniversary, or Valentine’s Day.  Our first anniversary was spent at Gibson’s Steakhouse. Last year, I grilled steaks for us as we had our vacation in the Smokies, and my 27th birthday was at the Chicago Chop House (great strip steak!)  For Valentine’s Day this year, we visited Morton’s steakhouse, home of the live lobsters that make TLEMK shriek. (They bring the cuts of meat out at Morton’s along with live lobsters, which V does NOT like. She has fishues.)

When I broached the subject of our anniversary dinner this year, she was not impressed with my desire to go to another famous steakhouse chain; Ruth’s Chris. She felt like steak might have been done enough times, that we might want to move on to something else.

She was wrong.

OhMyGod Steak is the only way I can describe the taste of Ruth’s Chris. We both had ribeyes, her being the lady’s cut at 16 oz., and mine being the “cowboy” cut at 22 (bone-in on mine.) The Chris steakhouse philosophy is to cook their steaks at 1800 degrees (Farenheit) and use only salt, pepper and butter. They then heat their plates to 450 degrees and put more butter on the bottom. The result is a sizziling steak cooked perfectly every time. It was ridiculous. This was after our seared ahi-tuna appetizer and beefsteak tomato salad, both of which were delicious.  I could go on for a long time about how good this place was (and slightly more affordable that Morton’s or Gibson’s) but the next time you see me, you just need to ask me about Ruth’s Chris, and the glazed look will tell you enough. I am converted.  TLEMK was converted too.

I think our tradition of meataversaries will safely continue.

Where’s your favorite place for a hunk of red meat? Please feel free to answer the poll (or by adding your own answer to it.)

Thinking about OhMyGod Steak is slightly bittersweet, gentle readers. I have to make a confession to you, and it is because I love you all that I am comfortable admitting my faults and foibles.

I am not a grillmaster.

Sure, I can roast hotdogs and bratwurst, and I know chicken is five minutes on a side. But I am not proficient in the fine art of grilling steaks, and I’m more than a little ashamed to admit it. Fourth of July was saved by Marc, who is a grillmaster. (He made some of the best steaks I ever had one weekend about a month ago. Olive oil is the key.) I know I need to get better at grilling. I now make this pledge to you, gentle readers:

I will grill at least once a week for the remainder of summer, and I will not, I WILL NOT, be afraid to grill red meat.
It is a tough course, I know, but I must do so in order to continue to woo (wu!) my lovely wife.

To help me, I will occasionally ask you, friendly readers for help, in the form of frantic phone calls at dinnertime.  I hope to eventually rely on Meathenge, a great new site I found tonight dedicated to grilling. I hope that Marc is ready to take me under his wing to teach me the fine art of smoking, for I am determined to be become a grillmaster.

Spice Up Your Life…

Tony| Category: General, Entertainment Tonight, EAT | 1 Comment

Gentle readers, I am branching out. We all know that my top three foods of all time are potatoes, cheese, and bacon, and any combination thereof. This weekend, to celebrate our youngest sister’s eighth birthday, the United Colors of Bennetton, the Wajs, my parents, grandma, and of course TLEMK and I, all trekked down to the city (Chicago, that is) to enjoy some of the heritage of three of my siblings; fine Ethiopian food. Ras Dashen, located on Broadway, just north of Hollywood on the Uptown/Edgewater border (look how trendy I sound!) is a relatively small establishment that specializes in “family style” Ethiopian cuisine. Large round platters, lined with injera (a spongy flat bread that has the texture of a pancake) is brought out, and then delicious dishes are put on top. Each platter (about 16″ across) had room for about 7-10 entrees and sides. Here’s a picture of what it looked like before we started eating:

To eat, you take pieces of injera that they give you in a basket, and fold it around the piece of food you want to eat. No utensils. It’s basically an appetizer in each bite. And boy, did we take lots of bites. We ordered a lot, and ate it all. My personal favorites included doro wat chicken and egg in a spicy berbere (think curry, but spicier) and yebeg wat, (lamb in the berbere sauce). However, everything I tried, meat or veggie, was delicious. Good times, and not too pricey. They also had delicious beverages, including a stout that had a great finish.

Since I was fortunate enough to get to drive the suburban into the city, I did not imbibe as much as I might have.  Driving the tank in the urban setting was fun, but driving home was much easier.  After stuffing ourselves, we headed back to the homestead for cake and presents.  We had a great time with the family this weekend.  Here’s a picture of the birthday girl:

So, if you’re looking for a legal way to spice up your life, try Ethiopian food.  This ends my lame conclusion.

Updating the State of the Fat

Tony| Category: General, EAT | 3 Comments

After seven weeks of ups and downs, after today’s “official” weigh-in, I am 45% towards my (first) goal. I have won the weigh-ins for the the last two, and all I have to say is this: I may miss wings and cheese fries, but I feel better about myself. I also like the fact that I’m not beating myself up over it too much– I make my workout schedule at the beginning of the week, and I stick to it.

Do I want to roll around in a pile of cheese fries? Yes, yes I do. Preferrably White Horse Cheese Fries, with Ranch in a Bottle.

I’m a little bit naughty everyday. I have something to keep me on feeling like I can eat like a human. Some startling statistics:

I have not eaten McDonald’s, or any other fast food (save Subway and Jimmy John’s; I had a salad at Portillo’s, A SALAD!) since Labor Day.

TLEMK and I are eating in. We’re cooking a lot, and I feel full at home. This is also saving money, and not wasting the food in the fridge.

I’ve brought my lunch to school everyday, and eaten it, except for the day we went to Portillo’s (for muthatruckin’ SALAD!!)

Now, camping was a setback, and I haven’t had time to workout this week as much as I’ve wanted. But, I still managed to get in three workouts, including today’s workout and 12 holes of golf (Walking. For the record, I still suck at golf.) This week will be a challenge as well (two meetings and grad school) but I’m getting into a routine. I will keep at it. I hope that I make it by Thanksgiving, because the holiday season is going to be an extra challenge. Thanks for letting me talk, Internet. I promise to return to funny soon.

(What if I’ve already peaked as funny? What if this is as funny as I get? The horror, the horror.)

Goodnight.

New (Old) Taxes

Tony| Category: General, WTF?, EAT | 1 Comment

In the fall of 1999, we were sitting in trombone sectionals during a MI (Marching Illini) rehearsal of some sort. The discussion quickly turned to t-shirt ordering for the upcoming road trip.

Schrand: Okay it’s 10 bucks a shirt for sizes up to XL, and then a dollar extra for each additional X.

Everyone Else: NO!
————————————-

As I was ordering a hooded zipper jacket this morning from my school, I noticed that the FAT tax is still in effect. On top of paying the $20 for the sweatshirt, I have to add $2 for my spare tire so I can get an XXL. I want my two dollars back. Two dollars.

I am so going to complain. Again.

And now I’ll go back to losing weight, so that someday, somewhere, my personal Fat Tax will be repealed. Hmm, maybe if I dump all the peanut butter cups into Lake Michigan…