LIFE GETS INTERRUPTED

Every day I blog. I try to be interesting. I try to be amusing. I try to be funny. I try to be informative. Today, I will be mostly somber. Late yesterday afternoon my daughter was winding down from another busy day and her one week visit to Paris, France. We received a text from her requesting permission for her to skip brushing her teeth as she was preparing to go to sleep. (I guess she was tired.)  While receiving this text, my wife and I were at the hotel where our out-of-town guests will be gathering to celebrate our daughter's Bat-Mitzvah in three weeks. And while that was going on, my phone started lighting up and buzzing.  It did not take long to learn that Civilization was attacked.  This time, in Paris, France (again.)   While I was learning how to operate the audio visual projector to show photos to our guests in three weeks, I was concurrently learning that there were multiple deaths in Paris, France at the hands of terrorists.  The true scope of these murders were not known to us for an hour or so more.  What to do?  We already knew that our daughter was snug as a bug, safe and sound in the home of her Parisian hosts.  Shortly thereafter, we received emails from the chaperones in Paris, as well as Sara's Principal back here in Chicago - that every child and all four teacher/chaperones were safe.  I received phone messages, and/or texts from family and friends over the next hour or so.  After assuring all that Sara was indeed safe, and possibly oblivious to what had transpired (at least until she awakens in Paris on Saturday morning) all we could do was watch the news and hope that Sara's plane departs Paris as scheduled on Saturday. We monitored her aircraft that departed Chicago four hours late which made necessary that Sara's flight would be delayed by some hours as well.  That is where we are now.... Waiting and hoping that Sara's flight departs as scheduled on Saturday, even if it delayed by a few hours.  

Now, I want to make one 'political statement.'   Every time I visit a building with the 'warning' sticker on the front door that this location is a gun-free zone - I know that the person that cheerfully applied that sticker is among the biggest morons in the universe.   I have noticed that criminals, murderers and terrorists tend to not attack police stations where people are known to be armed.  They do, however, seem to enjoy attacking places where they know people are not armed.  Way to go liberals, thanks for broadcasting the absolute safest places in the world for criminals, murderers and terrorists to 'apply their trade.'  

I guess I am not being my amusing, chipper self today... I apologize to readers of my blog who visit only to be amused and/or learn how a guy who used to be 309 lbs turned into a guy who is not about 220 lbs. Life Gets Interrupted sometimes.  And today, was one of those days.

Why are there so many morons that think that this sign is a sign of intelligent life?

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PLEASE STOP VOTING FOR THE MORONS THAT THINK THAT GUN FREE ZONES ARE INTELLIGENT.  PLEASE STOP SENDING YOUR CHILDREN TO UNIVERSITIES WHERE OUR CHILDREN ARE BRAINWASHED TO THINK THAT GUNS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR MURDER.  MURDERERS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR MURDER. PLEASE STOP VOTING FOR POLITICIANS WHO CANNOT NAME OR IDENTIFY OUR ENEMY.  PLEASE STOP SUPPORTING DEMOCRATS WHO ESPOUSE LEFTIST IDEAS.  PLEASE STOP LIVING A LIFE OF BLISSFUL IGNORANCE.  PLEASE EXCUSE MY ANGER THIS MORNING. 

...and now, I return you to my regular blog...

Another reminder that winter is on the way.  When I got underway this morning in Chicago, the temperature was 39° F and the windchill made it feel more like 28°F.  I dressed in four different layers and I did what I have been doing... I took off for a 10 mile walk to start my day.  As many of you know, one of the milestones of fitbit use is to (at least) surpass 10,000 steps per day.  A ten mile walk insures that the fitbit will be satisfied for the day. 

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Your Food Diary For:

Friday, November 13, 2015

BREAKFAST	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
tasteeos - Cereal, 3 cup	300	63	5	9	480	3
Kashi - Dark Chocolate Coconut Bar, 3 bar	360	63	11	12	150	21
	660	126	15	21	630	24
L U N C H
Ak Mak - Sesame Cracker, 20 Crackers	440	80	8	20	892	0
WHOLE FOODS 8738 - DRIED MANGO SLICES, 52.0 g (approx 6 pieces)	143	36	0	3	1	26
	583	116	8	23	893	26
D I N N E R
Generic - Grilled Brussel Sprouts, 1 cup	65	13	3	6	23	0
Teriyaki - Salmon, 120 g	270	3	8	47	0	0
Ronzoni - Gemelli., 56 g (2/3 cup)	200	42	1	7	0	2
Little Sald Bar Spinach (Aldi) - Spinach, 0.99 cups	7	1	0	1	21	0
Crab Salad - Imitation Crab, Deli, 1 cup	225	18	2	26	680	2
	767	77	14	86	724	4
S N A C K S
WHOLE FOODS - YOGURT PRETZELS, 34.0 g (approx 8 pcs)	162	24	0	2	153	16
Whole Foods - Dancing Star - Chunks of Energy - Carob Spirulina, 3 chunks (28g)	195	23	11	6	15	12
WHOLE FOODS - CHEDDAR SESAME STICKS, 36.4 g (1/3 cup)	195	17	13	4	624	1
WHOLE FOODS 7089 - 42% CACAO SEMI-SWEET CHOCOLATE CHIPS, 48.0 g (approx 2 TBSP)	224	32	13	3	0	26
General Mills With Whole Grain - Kix Cereal (Net Carbs), 2.5 cup	220	50	2	4	360	6
	996	145	38	19	1,152	61
Totals	3,006	464	75	148	3,400	115
Your Daily Goal	3,985	498	133	200	2,300	149
Remaining	979	33	58	51	-1,099	33
	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
	*You've earned 2,055 extra calories from exercise today

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       Your Exercise Diary for:

Friday, November 13, 2015

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
Walking, 4.5 mph, very, very brisk pace	128	2,043
MFP iOS calorie adjustment	N/A	12
Daily Total / Goal	129 / 30	2,055 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	691 / 210	9,130 / 4,130

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TOTAL CALORIES CONSUMED 3006 CALORIES
TOTAL CALORIES BURNED (10 MILE WALK) 2043 CALORIES
TOTAL NET CALORIES 963 CALORIES
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220.4 lbs

I weigh 220.4 lbs.

I gained 1.8 lb this week (It's gotta be muscle mass!)

I have lost 88.6 lbs in 325 days. Today begins Day 326.

I will always be at the beginning of a journey that never ends.

I weigh 220.4 lbs (325 days ago I weighed 309 lbs)

I have lost 28.7% of my weight since Dec 24.

I have a BMI, body mass index of 29.48

I had a 42.0 BMI on Dec 24 just 325 days ago (Class III obesity)

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fitbit day 72

30009 steps

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a little before 9:00AM Chicago time, my daughters flight took off from Paris...Now due to arrive Chicago a little after 6:00PM.  

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