The Syndicate

Did you make any? Care to share? Maybe we can cheer each other on to victory.

I will start I suppose. I have been thinking about joining the local gym for some time and finally went ahead and did it. I don't have some resolution about how much I am working out in particular, but it was time.

My new years resolution is to give up soda. Which is hard because I do so enjoy it. But my grandfather had renal failure and I know sodais extremely bad for your kidneys so, I know it's time for that too.

I always forget the resolutions I make, usually within a month or so.


Not that I ever set obtainable goals of course. Or, not that I can remember setting obtainable goals.

I don't generally make New Years Resolutions actually. But I made this decision the first week of January so yeah. So far I have only had two sodas, so it's going well I think.

My new resolution is job hunting. I start tomorrow. I hear IHOP is hiring - they just opened a new location. I go tomorrow to put in an app.

ABOUT TIME

bea wrote:My new resolution is job hunting. I start tomorrow. I hear IHOP is hiring - they just opened a new location. I go tomorrow to put in an app.

Good luck, lady!

My resolution (or goal, really) for this year is to have my CPA by the end of the year. The higher goal is to have it by my birthday, but we'll see.

Other than that, and more in line with a regular 'resolution', I suppose it's just to make sure I exercise a bit more and eat a little healthier.

I'm forcing him to eat more veggies.

veggies are yummy!!!

bea wrote:veggies are yummy!!!

God no, I wish I could say the same.

Spacedaisy wrote:I'm forcing him to eat more veggies.

They have a cookbook, i forget the name of it, that tells you how to sneak veggies into food. A friend let me borrow it (myhusband HATED veggies) and a few of the tips i still use, I use shredded squash & zucchini, or sometimes i add in some ground split peas ( a coffee grinder works well for this) instead of bread crumbs in meatloafs & meatballs, and I have never had anyone ask what was in them, or say they tasted weird, including my husband. If you use the squash/zukes you can also leave out some of the egg, or if you prefer, you can cut the amount of crumbs in half and sub the veggies for half and keep the egg. Freeze dried veggie flakes also work, if you can find them. I bought them at the survivalist store, lol, we had those in montana Mushrooms work well, too, pureed.

You can also puree cauliflower (or any white or yellow veggie) and mix it into cheese sauces, etc. If done to maybe 1/3 the volume, they never notice it, and it also cuts the fats/calories of the cheese sauce and thickens it up, so you can leave out thickeners like arrowroot, corn starch or flour.

MovingPictures07 wrote:

bea wrote:veggies are yummy!!!

God no, I wish I could say the same.

I swear on all that is holy and good. Veggies are yummy. Granted - it may take some butter and some cheese to get you there - but you can start with some nice FRESH veggies with REAL butter on them. And some salt and pepper and a little white cheese - and it's AMAZING.

Start with the ones you are used to - but move to fresh. FRESH green beans. FRESH corn on the cob! OMG - Peas in Pea Pods! I swear it's not what you think peas taste like! You'll work your way up to broccoli and cauliflower.

The veggies are warm but crisp. The flavors POP in your mouth. I swear it's true.


And - if push comes to shove - may I suggest "candied carrots"

He will never eat broccoli, this much I am sure of.

That's just ridiculousness. Broccoli is awesome!

Thats why you have to hide it for some people, see my posts above

Slip them the veggies when they aren't looking, disguise it as meat~

Vegetables are not meat!! Lol.

vegetables are not meat. I agree with you completely there sockface.

Vegetables are vegetables and should be enjoyed as they are.

Try the candied carrots. Really buy a bag of frozen carrot slices - cook them partially - then add a bit of brown sugar to them (the brown sugar is still sugar, but infinitely better and more sweet than white sugar) then finish cooking them in the brown sugar awesome happy home. Carrots are naturally sweet anyway - the brown sugar just steps it up a notch. It's hands down the *best* intro to "vegetables" outside of corn on the cob.

Also - have you ever tried dipping things? Like Hummus? It is chickpea based and delicious. I like dipping carrots and cucumbers and pita bread in hummus.

And speaking of cucumbers - do you like pickles? because they are cucumbers tainted. Cucumbers are hands down one of the most refreshing foods I know of. They are amazingly versatile. (and also something else - but I can only say that in a PM)

You have to have eaten and not hated SOME vegetable. I am curious as to what it was. I can't believe you grew up in Kentucky and didn't love to eat in season corn on the cob. If anything - let corn be your start point - then listen to me from there.

It's like wine - I can develop tastes when I have the base point to work from.

oh - also - my resolution of job hunting has been - cock blocked in every way - I hear in 2 weeks we get a GM - outside of everything else - it means there's a third person to pick up hours. And I'll have more free time to job hunt. It's hard to job hunt when you are working 60 hours a week.

bea wrote:vegetables are not meat. I agree with you completely there sockface.

Vegetables are vegetables and should be enjoyed as they are.

Try the candied carrots. Really buy a bag of frozen carrot slices - cook them partially - then add a bit of brown sugar to them (the brown sugar is still sugar, but infinitely better and more sweet than white sugar) then finish cooking them in the brown sugar awesome happy home. Carrots are naturally sweet anyway - the brown sugar just steps it up a notch. It's hands down the *best* intro to "vegetables" outside of corn on the cob.

Also - have you ever tried dipping things? Like Hummus? It is chickpea based and delicious. I like dipping carrots and cucumbers and pita bread in hummus.

And speaking of cucumbers - do you like pickles? because they are cucumbers tainted. Cucumbers are hands down one of the most refreshing foods I know of. They are amazingly versatile. (and also something else - but I can only say that in a PM)

You have to have eaten and not hated SOME vegetable. I am curious as to what it was. I can't believe you grew up in Kentucky and didn't love to eat in season corn on the cob. If anything - let corn be your start point - then listen to me from there.

It's like wine - I can develop tastes when I have the base point to work from.

Carrots aren't too bad to begin with. The main source of vegetable I do get is spinach salad; I actually much prefer that to typical lettuce salad. Corn is OK, but eh. Mostly the green ones I haven't been fond of, lol. I'm not really a fan of pickles or cucumbers, not sure why.

Also, hummus is the most amazing thing in the universe!! I have used it with carrots and it helps significantly (so does peanut butter). I haven't tried it with anything other than carrots and that was only once, so I suppose that would be a decent starting point.

really? you like spinach?! that is awesome!! In vegetable land - that is a super player!!!! So many vitamins and minerals - and you can incorporate it into so much food! And it is always the choice over Iceburg lettuce.

If every salad you ever eat is made of spinach or mixed greens or romaine lettuce - you are already doing *so* much for both flavor and nutrition vs iceburg crap. It's 90% water with NO nutritional content.


But only fresh spinach! It's not like popeye! No can stuff ever ever ever!!!!!! Really - some fresh spinach in a salad is amazing - but also - some spinach lightly warmed in a pasta dish - with either alfredo sauce or an a natural sauce (my preference) spinach - pasta - some butter and some parm cheese - omg - amazing. simple things work - well. (and from what I understand - the spinach helps metabolize the pasta and heavy sauce.)

and yay! you like hummus! let me introduce to you my hummus wrap: it's a large toritlla - and trust me on the ingredients - a spread of hummus on the wrap - then some spinach, some feta cheese (I like the preseasoned tomato basil hummus so I don't have to add spices) (but if you are adding some fresh spices - basil makes this dish sing) some fresh cucumber, some fresh tomato (I like roma tomatos in this) and some sprouts. like bean sprouts or alfalfa sprouts - you could add a hint of greek salad dressing to it if you need a bit more flavor - but I like it just as it is. I swear you will love the flavor combination - even if you don't like one or more of the ingredients by them selves - they meld together wonderfully.

At least just try it then tell me it sucked.

also - you see the word I keep using over and over again? it's fresh.

vegetables - they work best fresh - frozen can be used in some places - but when veggies are the MAIN ingredient - you really need to buy the best you can buy.

also - don't even get me started about fresh winter squash!!!

bea wrote:really? you like spinach?! that is awesome!! In vegetable land - that is a super player!!!! So many vitamins and minerals - and you can incorporate it into so much food! And it is always the choice over Iceburg lettuce.

If every salad you ever eat is made of spinach or mixed greens or romaine lettuce - you are already doing *so* much for both flavor and nutrition vs iceburg crap. It's 90% water with NO nutritional content.


But only fresh spinach! It's not like popeye! No can stuff ever ever ever!!!!!! Really - some fresh spinach in a salad is amazing - but also - some spinach lightly warmed in a pasta dish - with either alfredo sauce or an a natural sauce (my preference) spinach - pasta - some butter and some parm cheese - omg - amazing. simple things work - well. (and from what I understand - the spinach helps metabolize the pasta and heavy sauce.)

and yay! you like hummus! let me introduce to you my hummus wrap: it's a large toritlla - and trust me on the ingredients - a spread of hummus on the wrap - then some spinach, some feta cheese (I like the preseasoned tomato basil hummus so I don't have to add spices) (but if you are adding some fresh spices - basil makes this dish sing) some fresh cucumber, some fresh tomato (I like roma tomatos in this) and some sprouts. like bean sprouts or alfalfa sprouts - you could add a hint of greek salad dressing to it if you need a bit more flavor - but I like it just as it is. I swear you will love the flavor combination - even if you don't like one or more of the ingredients by them selves - they meld together wonderfully.

At least just try it then tell me it sucked.

also - you see the word I keep using over and over again? it's fresh.

vegetables - they work best fresh - frozen can be used in some places - but when veggies are the MAIN ingredient - you really need to buy the best you can buy.

I do not like the canned spinach, so no worries there. I do try to eat spinach salads whenever I can, although I am occasionally guilty of passing up on them. I think that's the main thing I'll have to watch, is telling myself to eat something vegetable when most otherwise I would just pass on it or wouldn't think of making/getting it.

The wrap sounds good. Annie actually introduced me to something similar to that, and I have had it on two occasions now and was able to eat it, lol. I mean, I didn't absolutely love it, but as far as vegetable dishes go, it was on the tolerable end of the spectrum, which is very high on the favorable end. She adds peppers which aren't so bad and doesn't have sprouts. Your combination here would probably be an interesting variation.

I pretty much adore bell peppers.

bell peppers in all of their colors are fantastic. And it's my understanding that each color brings different nutrients to the table. So mix that stuff up yo!

As for my continuing resolution. Ya'll know Imma starting to job hunt soon and ya'll know I'm looking into teaching again. I've not officially started yet - I'm still working 100 billion hours a week. New GM is coming and hopefully AM who is now down with surgery gets better soonish. I want out of there - my higher up boss knows that too - I've said it subtle like, he knows it's coming, just not when or how. He know's I'm keeping on till things get stable.

That said - while I'm doing all this - as excited as I am about the thought of being in the classroom again, I have to admit - I'm kinda terrified too. I'm really hecka skerred. I left the job 10 years ago because I was costing kids their education. I know I've grown and changed - and that I'm not the same person I was 10 years ago, but it strikes me that neither are the kids. Or the schools. And what if that is an awful mistake I'm making?

I can't work my smart phone for god's sake! I'm ok with the basics - yes I can make them write with pen and paper - but when it comes to giving them a base to construct websites for literature and all that, I am ignorant. Woefully ignorant. When I was teaching, they wanted the English teachers to teach their students how to put together a power point presentation. I now suddenly feel like the older teachers I worked with who were terrified of the idea. I'm afraid the world moved on and I didn't keep up well enough.

It may just be cold feeties. It prolly is - but I'm skerred. What if this is wrong? Not for me - but for the kids? I can't do that twice. I can't move into education a second time thinking I have something to offer them - only to find out a second time that my presence costs them an education. I would rather never walk back into a classroom than think for one second another generation of kids didn't get the education they deserved because I sucked at doing my job.


IDK. the fear slipped into the plan today. It's left me a bit cold and skerred.

NO.

NO FEAR. Fear is the mind killer...

Dune aside, it really is. It almost stopped you in the past. You are more mature now, tempered with experience, a grown up, not just a few years older than them. You can connect with people in a way many teachers can't. the only English teacher I remember well from High School is someone you remind me of in some ways. Life is too short to spend the rest of ot hawkinf Pizza for a corporate behemoth who does not give a shit. Seriously.

No Fear. You will piss me off, and this is not pretty.

rock meet hard place.

Yea. It's conundrum time.

I hate it there - in that I hate the situation. I don't hate the people. Working with them (most of them) day in and day out - I kinda like them alot. And I adore the new GM. He has high hopes. I admire that and see his goals as completely reasonable (though they DO require lots of work.)

He's been fishing about my plans and I've been wish washy - no need to burn bridges before I need to after all. I told him I'm considering going back into teaching as that is the one thing about this job I most love. I was also honest when I said when I accepted the AM job it was always with the goal to be a GM - so I could run a store for a year and tack that onto my already lengthy fnb resume.

He sees the same problems I see. He sees the same potential I see. I COULD see me sticking around to help turn things around there. EXCEPT I'm so very burned out. And also - as an AM - even as a store ready AM - I'd only ever get *so* much credit despite working like I was a GM.

My hed says "get out!!! get out now - find a nice substitute teaching job and work your way back into that. It's in your best interests!!"

But my heart says "God, I love a challenge..."

Is your heart saying "I love a challenge" or is your head saying "this looks better for now and I don't like change". Sometimes they look alike. What do you want to be doing in 5 years? In 10? Does the going get easier as you go up that company's ladder? Or is there something you should be doing to live your dream. Life is short.

juliets wrote:Is your heart saying "I love a challenge" or is your head saying "this looks better for now and I don't like change". Sometimes they look alike. What do you want to be doing in 5 years? In 10? Does the going get easier as you go up that company's ladder? Or is there something you should be doing to live your dream. Life is short.

Honestly - my head and my heart both love a challenge. And they are both auguring for different challenges. God love them both.

You are very right and SVS is also very right. It's why I post these things. So you all can remind me that I am apt to take the "easy" road of "god I love a challenge." In 5 years - or 10 years. I'm not sure what I want to be doing. I would love to be working in food service if it ment I spent more time in the office and less time like lifting things and doing the grunt work I've been doing for FAR too long now. But I also understand that I'm pretty much tailor made to always do the grunt work in that field. My old GM told me today that my new GM "likes me" and it was all I could do to not be all like "Of course he likes me. He has goals. And he's about to only have me after next week. And I'm good at sucking it up when I have to. He fell into lucky having me as his reliable AM."

In 5 years or 10 years - I'd most love to have a job that I could work and use my brain more than my body for. I've been abusing my body since it was 13. I would like to have a job that cushions my love and I. That would finance a wedding. That would finance some time for my love to find out what he wants to do that's not delivering pizzas day in and day out. That would finance us buying a house someday.

Yes. I DO realize that typing all that out - pushes me back toward teaching.

I just NEED to talk it all out. I need to come to the realization on my own. And I need you all to ask me the right questions. That's why you guys rock so much. You keep me going where I need to go.

I do year long themes, which is kind of like a resolution, right?

2011 - To Heal Heart, Body, Mind @ Soul After Working 100+ hours in corporate law
2012 - Get out of my own head
2013 - Do creative stuff
2014 - Be kinder to myself

Hello, resolutions thread!

I'm hoping to make some lifestyle changes this year and accomplish as much as I can academically, since it's a big year for me (finishing classes with my last semester this Spring, then working on a 2nd year research paper which I can hopefully get presented at conferences and then published, tons of teaching over the summer, then studying for and hopefully passing comprehensive exams and starting my dissertation).

Mafia-wise I'll be shifting to an observer and administrator duties-only role for a while, very possibly all of 2016, but who knows? I am an addict after all. But breaking from playing for a substantial time will allow me to shift my downtime elsewhere... since otherwise the past year and a half (since I started the PhD) almost all of my free time has gone into in-game mafia posting, and anything remaining has gone to out-of-game posting and spending time with the wife. I hope to instead have more time for interacting with you all via these off-topic threads (and Smashfest, for those of you who are participating), and funneling my free time purely into non-creative outlets such as playing video games, watching some shows, etc., since I rarely find time for any of those things. I need to keep my creativity and energy focused on PhD, rather than getting emotionally tied up in games. I'm also hoping to get more exercise and cut back going out to eat nearly altogether, since my work puts me behind a computer all day and between that and the honeymoon and everything else in 2015, my health took some beatings. But my main goal for 2016 is to definitely get a published paper in the works, hopefully two or more.

Here's hoping all of you accomplish your resolutions as well, for those of you who have made them!

Resolutions beyond what new books to read or what new operas to watch for the first time tend to not work in my case. If anything, I'd put this year on hold and hope, motivate myself and try to achieve better things starting end of '16-next year.

But if I can think of something in general:

-- manage to balance my jobs with my practice, so that the tumor feeling of 16 years of studying are slowly going to waste won't grow any bigger than it already is
-- manage to focus on my PhD
-- manage to focus on the recitals I have to prepare
-- get my B2 Zertifikat in German (that's bound to happen anyway - the test, at least, I mean)
-- go out on a date

My resolutions are all pretty standard.

I need a job, and to save money after I get that.
I'm actually probably at the healthiest of my life, but I have some workout goals I won't bore everyone with. Also, I've discussed taking self defense courses with my sister in law. Have to be safe where I live.
I think I've done so much since I've lived in London, but there are a few more things on my checklist. Not sure how long I want to live here for, so I'd like to take full advantage of the city.
I have some hobbies I want to continue to improve this year, but I'd also like to pick up a new one. I've ordered a cross stitch kit, so if I enjoy that will have to get more supplies. There is a place nearby advertising a free beekeeping course. I can't really see any use for this knowledge, but you never know and why not? So I might check that out.
Read even more!
Learn Portuguese (or at least start learning it). I used to love learning languages. Time to revisit it. And a bunch of my husbands family has Portuguese as their first language.

I know I had more, but that's all I can remember at the moment.

I'd also like to learn Portuguese.

Start learning! Then we can practice together

Spacedaisy wrote:Did you make any? Care to share? Maybe we can cheer each other on to victory.

I will start I suppose. I have been thinking about joining the local gym for some time and finally went ahead and did it. I don't have some resolution about how much I am working out in particular, but it was time.

My new years resolution is to give up soda. Which is hard because I do so enjoy it. But my grandfather had renal failure and I know sodais extremely bad for your kidneys so, I know it's time for that too.

I was addicted to soda in the 12th grade. I'd get a slight headache in the mid afternoon until I came home and had my mountain dew. I realized I must be addicted and quit cold turkey. Since then I've drank soda here and there. Last December, however, I began drinking water...a LOT of water. I started drinking 60-70 ounces a day. For months, I drank only water and perhaps a small glass of milk on some mornings. Then one day I was out to eat (doesn't happen often) and I thought I'd order a soda. It tasted disgusting to me! I was shocked. I now drink less water than I did, but I still always have water with me and sip on it all day.

My new years resolution is to lose the joggle and get a little buffer. I also intend to ditch the scale and buy a body fat caliper.

Soda addictions are for the weak.

My sister in law is addicted to soda. My brother won't have it in the house, and she hides it like an alcoholic hiding vodka in the sock drawer. True story.

I'm addicted to Pepsi. On a higher level, it's probably the fizz I'm addicted to, but not all sodas satisfy me in that regard. Even if I would manage to somehow switch to water entirely, it would have to be sparkling water. The stronger, the better.

Elohcin wrote:

Spacedaisy wrote:Did you make any? Care to share? Maybe we can cheer each other on to victory.

I will start I suppose. I have been thinking about joining the local gym for some time and finally went ahead and did it. I don't have some resolution about how much I am working out in particular, but it was time.

My new years resolution is to give up soda. Which is hard because I do so enjoy it. But my grandfather had renal failure and I know sodais extremely bad for your kidneys so, I know it's time for that too.

I was addicted to soda in the 12th grade. I'd get a slight headache in the mid afternoon until I came home and had my mountain dew. I realized I must be addicted and quit cold turkey. Since then I've drank soda here and there. Last December, however, I began drinking water...a LOT of water. I started drinking 60-70 ounces a day. For months, I drank only water and perhaps a small glass of milk on some mornings. Then one day I was out to eat (doesn't happen often) and I thought I'd order a soda. It tasted disgusting to me! I was shocked. I now drink less water than I did, but I still always have water with me and sip on it all day.

My new years resolution is to lose the joggle and get a little buffer. I also intend to ditch the scale and buy a body fat caliper.

That's awesome. I did a similar thing a little after finishing high school where I quit drinking soda completely. I don't think I was addicted before that, but I know I consistently drank it. Anyway, I have trouble drinking soda nowadays, especially coke.

Just coffee, water, and beer. That'll do for me.