Austin Flies

There's a national program called Young Eagles where pilots take kids up and fly them around in their own planes for fun and to possibly develop an interest in aviation. One of the Portland chapters of the Experimental Aircraft Association had one such event today at Fort Vancouver's Pearson Air Museum and Airfield and Austin got to fly in a Van's RV-7a. Harrison Ford is the current Young Eagles chairman and has flown over 250 kids in his own plane (one at a time of course). I thought there might be a slight chance of him being there since he's apparently very active in the club and is in town doing a movie. Well, he wasn't there, but we got Dave Salesky (everyone's favorite Portland weatherman) instead - not doing the news, but flying kids in his plane; very nice of all the pilots to give up their time and planes - at some expense - to give kids a chance to get up in the air. Anyhoo, here are some more photos.

Forty

I've been imagining and somewhat dreading my 40th birthday since I was about 13 - when my parents turned 40. For all the fear and loathing, it turned out to be a pleasant, unremarkable day. As Eckhart Tolle might say, it turns out that no matter how old I am, it's always now.

Anyway, thanks to everyone for all the notes, cards, and phone calls. I feel loved. :-)

Dozer Day

Took Austin and Gray to Dozer Day yesterday. Dozer Day is an annual benefit at a local quarry where kids (with some assistance) get to drive real bulldozers, backhoes, and other big tractors, plus some food, games and general mayhem. Transportation to/from the festivities is via giant dump truck. It was a lot of fun and a perfect day weather-wise. Here are some pictures.

Tree Day

We decided to enclose the side-yard so that Austin would have a semi-secure place to goof around outside and to make the yard a little more private. After some debate, we settled on a hedgerow of arborvitae. My Extreme(ish) Gardening sister might be thinking this would be a great opportunity for me to get my hands dirty and enjoy some dirt time outside in the nice weather. Personally, I'm more of an Extreme Makeover kind of gardener. The way I see it, my part is to look out the window occasionally and make sure the guys are putting stuff in the right places while keeping my check-writing hand limber and at the ready. Should be done today. Whew! :-)

Fat Dad Update

186 lbs - 17 lbs down, 8 to go. Problem is, I can now see that my goal wasn't low enough 'cause I'm still plenty fat. Should I move the target now or wait until I reach the original goal? Hmmm...

Oh - and since our collective diet has been modified, Rudy says he "accidentally" lost 10 lbs. Whatever! :-)

Fat Dad Update

189lbs. Now we're getting somewhere. 14 pounds gone, 11 to go. Woo-hoo!

Close Shave

Well, I accidentally shaved off my beard today. As I was finishing my bi-weekly facial hair cleanup, I spotted one last wild hair and, forgetting that I'd already removed the guard from the trimmer, cut a clean swath right across my chin. Not much you can do with that but finish the job. :-)

Fat Dad Update

OK, it's May 3, I still have 15+ pounds to lose by the 28th, and 'sensible diet plus exercise' isn't going to make that happen. Desperate times call for desperate measures - or at least radical change. Starting yesterday I'm consuming 0 (zero) carbs on the Atkins theory that consuming little or no carbs forces your body to make blood sugar from stored fat. I've used this method a couple of times before with good results and it took years of senseless eating to gain the weight back.

Cons: Ketosis breath - stock up on sugarless breath mints. Heckish few initial days where limbs feel like they're made of lead before the body figures out it's really not going to get any sugar and had better go to plan B. Elevated cholesterol levels, though I already take Lipitor which hopefully offsets some of this and a few weeks of high cholesterol probably isn't going to make much long-term difference to heart health. Slight chance of long term imprisonment if I murder someone for their blueberry scone.

Pros: Quick results - I think you'll see what I mean as I start posting major losses. Loss of appetite - sounds odd to list this as a "pro", but I feel like I'm a slave to food, always having to eat first thing in the morning, last thing at night, and every couple of hours during the day. The whole blood sugar battle goes away and is replaced with an energy level that is a little low but blessedly stable. Fewer headaches - well, there's the "hunger headache" for the first day or two, but after that (based on past experience), I have few actual migraines while on this diet. Tells me that migraines and blood sugar are somehow related - at least for me. And did I mention Quick Results? It's the only way I know of (short of amputation or childbirth) to lose a lot of weight in a hurry without being completely miserable - especially handy if you have a firm short-term goal, or you're trying to win a bet (or a new pair of jeans - Tessa). :-)


Stay tuned.