Monthly Archives: June 2013
Critters – 1, Me -0
Something is attacking my garden and only eating my kale. This distresses me greatly. We put a mesh fence around all the beds but whatever is eating must be capable of climbing the fence (squirrels?) or digging under ( ground hogs?) Do cats eat greens? And why are they only eating my kale? Now I live in the City of Newark, New Jersey for those of you unfamiliar with the northeastern U.S. we are strictly City but I do live across the street from a large County park. No deer venture within several communities of me but we do have raccoons, opossum, ground hogs, skunks, cats, squirrels, and lots of birds. Haven’t caught anything in the act and I am very upset. If anyone has any ideas about the culprit and/or prevention let me know.
Triathlon News — 500 meters/540 yards
Today I swam 500 meters which is 540 yards! My best swim yet. Not pretty but I did it. I believe that next week will be the half mile week. Six more laps will do it. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.
Stevia Plant – Sugar Substitute
Not sure if I mentioned that I am growing a Stevia plant. I haven’t particularly liked the stevia substitutes that I have tried. The licorice type after taste is not good for me but I think that in time I can get used to it. I got to thinking that perhaps the dried or steeped leaves of the plant may taste differently than commercial substitutes. The plant is growing nicely and the internet tells me that I can dry and store the leaves and or make an extract or tincture. I think first I am going to boil some tea and make iced tea with fresh mint and stevia leaves. We’ll see how that works.
Sugar News
Kirkland (Costco brand) Mandarin Oranges in light syrup have 16g of sugar for the four-ounce cup. Dole Mandarin Oranges in 100% juice has 18g of sugar. Go figure. Both are too much for me and I have to consider cutting down/out these types of product. Nothing wrong with them I just don’t want the sugar. Gotta read the labels.
Can I Banish Sugar?
I haven’t posted in months and at this point find it hard to post. I will talk about it at some point I guess. Not today. Today I want to talk about sugar. I know it’s not good for me. Probably not good for anybody but I’m just talking about me. A friend came by earlier and she reminded me that she has almost removed sugar from her diet. Got me back to the discussion in my mind. I just don’t see how I can pull it off.
If I “unsweeten” my diet, I’m not sure what I would eat. I eat sweet stuff with most meals. I am diabetic so I don’t drink juice (on rare occasions) no sweetened drinks (but diet stuff all day) Brown sugar on oatmeal. Preserves sweetened with juice on my toast. Ketchup, honey mustard, duck sauce. Should I go on. I was raised by someone who thought that sugar was a food group. Glazed carrots (with sugar), candied yams, stewed tomatoes (sugar), barbecued chicken and on and on. Miracle Whip ( no mayo in my house growing up) Sweet pickles with dinner. Cranberry sauce with chicken, mint jelly with lamb. OMG it looks worse on paper.
If the sweet is missing I am not particular about eating it. I have stayed away from things like cake and cookies the last few weeks but that doesn’t put a dent in my addiction. Well I could go on and on. What small change can I make and stick with? Ideas?
First Steps the Hardest 