GOOSE ISLAND

Goose Island is the only island within Chicago. One will never see a sign welcoming you to the island or a sign thanking you for visiting and asking you to visit again. It seems to only be identified on Chicago maps. There are no residential units on this island. The theme of my urban hike today was to walk every street, every nook and cranny that was not private property on Goose Island. Once I finished that, which was about five miles, I circumnavigated the island as best I could. My hike ended up back on Lake Michigan. When I was done, I had logged fifteen miles. 

Fifteen Mile Urban Hike which focused on 'exploring' Goose Island.

This shows that I walked every street possible in Goose Island and that I took a hike around the island as well.

It was a 'grey' day in Chicago and this black and white photograph captured the mood better than a full color photo.

Your Food Diary For:

Thursday, September 8, 2016

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Quaker - Grits - Instant - Original	300	66	0	6	930	0
Bacon Slices	400	0	25	8	525	0
Quaker - Chewy Granola 90 Calories	270	57	6	3	240	21
	970	123	31	17	1,695	21
L U N C H
Campbell's Chunky Manhattan Clam Chowder	120	18	3	5	800	3
Earthbound Farm - Baby Spinach, Organic	40	6	0	4	130	0
Made Good - Choc chip granola minis	200	28	9	4	0	10
	360	52	12	13	930	13
D I N N E R
Couscous, cooked, 1 cup, cooked	176	36	0	6	8	0
Pork Chops, 4 oz	170	0	8	24	55	0
Home Made - Garden Salad, 1 bowl	100	6	0	4	400	4
	446	42	8	34	463	4
S N A C K S
FRENCH VANILLA ALMOND GRANOLA	500	92	16	10	120	28
	500	92	16	10	120	28
Totals	2,276	309	67	74	3,208	66
Your Daily Goal	4,640	580	154	233	2,300	174
Remaining	2,364	271	87	159	-908	108
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 2,710 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today...   You'd weigh 179.1 lbs in 5 weeks     

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Your Exercise Diary for:

Thursday, September 8, 2016

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
15 MILE URBAN HIKE	208	2,779
Daily Total / Goal	209 / 30	2,710 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	660 / 210	8,264 / 4,130

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from wikipedia.com

Goose Island is the only island on the Chicago River in Illinois. It is an artificial island, formed by the North Branch of the Chicago River on the west and the North Branch Canal on the east. It covers 160 acres (0.65 km²), and is about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long and 0.5 miles (0.80 km) across at its widest point.

The land that was to become the present-day Goose Island lies on a bend in the Chicago River between North Avenue on the north and Chicago Avenue on the south. In 1853 William B. Ogden, who had been Chicago's first mayor, formed the Chicago Land Company, which purchased land on the east side of the river to excavate clay for brick-making. Starting from the south, workers excavated a channel northwards, and by 1857 the channel had rejoined the river forming a shortcut past the bend in the river. The channel was eventually dredged to 50 feet (15 m) wide and 10 feet (3.0 m) deep to make it navigable, and it became known as the North Branch Canal, or Ogden's Canal. The island thus created was also sometimes nicknamed Ogden's Island, a name that some Chicago aldermen proposed to make the official name of the island in 1891.

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LIBERTY PARK TRAIL

Yesterday, I did my hike early in the morning, which left the rest of the day to see customers. I began my hike right out the front door from my Lexington, Kentucky hotel. Although the focus of my hike was meant to be the LIBERTY PARK TRAIL, it turned out that this paved path through a park was only about one mile.  I had walked about 2.5 miles to find the trailhead, and I stretched my hike another 6.5 miles so that I did not quit until I had logged ten miles for the day.

Your Food Diary For:

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Hotel Brand Sausage Patties, 3 cooked patty	300	0	24	18	780	0
Golden Grahams - Golden Grahams	400	90	3	7	799	33
Kroger - Grits	500	105	5	10	1,700	5
	1,200	195	32	35	3,279	38
L U N C H
Chick Fill A - Chicken Sandwhich, 1 Sandwich	440	42	16	30	1,400	6
Special K - Protien Meal Bar- Double Chocolate, 1 Bar	170	23	5	12	180	13
Kellogg's - Strawberry Nutrigrain Soft Baked Breakfast	120	24	3	2	125	11
	730	89	24	44	1,705	30
D I N N E R
Subway - Footlong Turkey Breast on Wheat., 1 sandwich	560	92	17	36	1,890	11
	560	92	17	36	1,890	11
S N A C K S
General Mills - Cheerios	210	42	3	0	285	3
Slim Jim (Jerky) Corrected 07/13) - Steakhouse Smokin' Mesquite Tender Steak Strips (Jerky), 84 g (1 oz)	270	12	12	27	1,290	12
Special K - Protien Meal Bar- Double Chocolate, 1 Bar	170	23	5	12	180	13
Nestle - Dark Chocolate Bar	440	46	26	6	0	0
	1,090	123	46	45	1,755	28
Totals	3,580	499	119	160	8,629	107
Your Daily Goal	3,906	488	130	196	2,300	146
Remaining	326	-11	11	36	-6,329	39
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 1,976 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today...   You'd weigh 201.1 lbs in 5 weeks.

Your Exercise Diary for:

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
TEN MILE HIKE	131	1,976
Daily Total / Goal	131 / 30	1,976 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	389 / 210	4,527 / 4,130

PALESTINIAN CHICKEN

Among the most memorable episodes of Larry David's CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM is PALESTINIAN CHICKEN.  The focus of the episode resolves around the a new restaurant which serves delicious 'Palestinian-style' chicken.  The conundrum faced by Larry David in frequenting this establishment revolves around the anti-Israel, anti-semitic and Pro-Palestinian views of the restaurant employees and customers.  Only Larry David, a Jew, could find humor in such a premise. This legendary, very funny and highly rated episode from the final season of the show originally aired on HBO on July 24, 2011.  [On June 14, 2016, HBO announced that CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM will return for a ninth season.  That news is pretty, pretty, pretty good!]

This is the logo of the fictional restaurant from that episode:

logo from fictional restaurant in Curb Your Enthusiasm

What I did not realize for a number of years was that this fictional restaurant was likely based on an extremely popular restaurant that really does exist.   THE HALAL GUYS is well-known in New York City and has very loyal enthusiastic customers.  Apparently the news that a franchise was opening in Chicago was BIG NEWS indeed!

logo from The Halal Guys, an extremely popular restaurant

On August 20, THE HALAL GUYS opened their first restaurant in Chicago.  In fact, this was the first of 200 new restaurants planned for the world in an aggressive expansion.  As I am Jewish, a new halal restaurant would not necessarily get on my personal radar.  This particular restaurant has been impossible to ignore.  From  the moment that they open for business each day, a line forms outside.  Apparently, this restaurant has drawn customers from all over the Chicago area. This restaurant is around the corner from our home and we see the line every day. Naturally, we had to sample it to see what the hubbub was all about. And that is what we did yesterday.

After a morning doctor appointment, my wife and I waited on line and ordered combination chicken/gyro plates.  I don't know that it was worth standing on line for 20 minutes - but I will admit that the food was very tasty.

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This restaurant is 'take-out' only.  Here I am holding my 'treasured' meal

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All the 'take-out' food is packed in a tin. The genesis of this 'restaurant' was a  'hot dog' street cart. I guess they are being true to their roots in the way that they continue to present their food.

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 Wednesday MENU

breakfast   two apples                                                                                      160 calories

lunch         HALAL GUYS gyro/chicken platter                                                 950 calories

dinner        baby spinach salad w/asparagus, tomato   CLAM CHOWDER     354 calories

SNACK     ORGANIC DARK CHOCOLATE BAR, rice cakes multigrain,

                     tamari almonds                                                                             1334 calories

total calories consumed 2798 calories

calories burned

YMCA PRECOR elliptical 4:3 interval: 3 minutes level 20/20, four minutes level 15/15      1729 calories

TOTAL CALORIES BURNED 1729 calories

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Wednesday net calories 1069 calories

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here is some information about The Halal Guys from their website:

From humble beginnings as a New York City hot dog cart to a world-renowned international restaurant chain, The Halal Guys story is the quintessential American Dream. The Halal Guys is defining a new, thriving segment for the restaurant industry: American Halal Food! The Halal Guys legend began in 1990, when the three founding partners opened up a hot dog cart on West 53rd & 6th Avenue in New York City. As business grew, they recognized a huge demand from Muslim cab drivers looking for a halal food meal. That is when the famous platter of chicken and gyro over rice was born. And let’s not forget about the famous white and red sauces! Fast-forward 25 years, five carts, two New York City restaurants, and millions of diverse customers served, The Halal Guys is growing yet again. Fans no longer have to be in NYC to experience The Halal Guys as they look to share American Halal Food all over the country and the world.

What is American Halal Food? 

In one word, delicious! American Halal Food features a flavor profile that can’t be replicated in any other cuisine format. The Halal Guys are the pioneers of American Halal Food. Once you have had a taste, you will understand why New Yorkers and tourists alike have stood in the city’s longest food cart line (sometimes for hours) to get a hot, steaming platter of chicken or gyro over rice, covered in The Halal Guys famous, proprietary White Sauce.

American Halal Food:

• Much like the United States, American Halal Food is a complex melting pot of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean flavors that are sure to delight

• Flawlessly cooked, premium quality Halal meats that are seasoned to perfection

• Our American Halal Food and meats are sourced and prepared following strict Islamic dietary guidelines for Halal

• Humane treatment of livestock, high quality ingredients, and ethical choices are bedrocks in imparting a distinctive taste

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if you have seen the episode, Palestinian Chicken, perhaps some of these photos will make you laugh as you remember the premise of the show (especially the scene when Larry and Jeff prevent their good friend Funkhouser from joining them in the anti-semitic restaurant while he was wearing his yarmulke)

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fitbit day 7
just over 20,000 steps