TO THE CHABAD HOUSE

I have made friends at my local Chabad House since moving into this neighborhood nearly 4 years ago.  A Chabad House is a center of traditional (Orthodox) Judaism.  A Chabad House is run by a Rabbi (Shaliach, Emissary) and his wife, a Shlucha (female word for emissary).   A Chabad House seemingly can be found almost anywhere there are Jews. Whether it is a place where Jews live or where Jews travel.  I always enjoy hearing radio talk-show host, author and public speaker, Dennis Prager recount a story about how he once went to a Chabad House in Cambodia! There are nearly 5000 Chabad Houses around the world and one can be found in 49 of the 50 states of The United States. I am blessed to live within 100 feet of a Chabad House. It is at my Chabad House where I have been exposed to authentic Judaism in ways that I had never been before.  The traditional Jewish lifestyle is not something that I am interested in as a full-time proposition.  It is something that I am greatly interested in on an 'a la carte' basis.  I have made terrific friends at my Chabad House.  One of my friends, is moving back to New York with his wife in a few short weeks.  We made arrangements to make sure that we both selected this Friday to be there so that we can enjoy the wonderful camaraderie of friends,  joy of Judaism,  the serenity of Shabbat, a delicious meal prepared by the Rabbi's wife and a L'Chaim (or two, or three).  So, tonight, Friday....It's to the Chabad House!

Chabad House, Dearborn Street, Chicago

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For lunch, I visited a Whole Foods Market which is less than 2 miles from my home.  I managed to stretch this two mile trip into an eight mile walk.  Afterwards, I naturally walked home.  Another day,  another day of walking ten miles.  The last couple of days, my exercise had been working out on the elliptical machine. It was good to get back outside.  

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Your Food Diary For:

Thursday, December 17, 2015

BREAKFAST	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
Malt O Meal - Honey Nut Scooters, 60 g	240	48	3	6	420	18
steel cut oatmeal - steel cut oat meal, 1 cup	600	108	10	20	0	4
Red Delicious - Medium Apple, 2 apple	160	44	0	0	0	34
	1,000	200	13	26	420	56
L U N C H
WHOLE FOODS - SALAD BAR	375	0	0	0	0	0
WHOLE FOODS BANANA CHIPS	170	16	10	2	5	1
WHOLE FOODS  VANILLA GRANOLA	500	80	16	10	120	30
	1,045	96	26	12	125	31
D I N N E R
EARTHBOUND FARM - ORGANIC BABY SPINACH	60	0	0	6	195	0
365 - Hearts of Palm: Salad Cut, 1 cup	50	10	0	4	580	0
libby's - Sweet Corn, 0.88 cup	105	16	3	4	350	12
Honey Nut Scooters - Cereal, 3 cup (30g)	330	72	5	6	630	30
Apple - - Honey Crisp - Small, 1 apple	55	15	0	0	0	15
	600	112	7	20	1,755	57
Totals	2,645	408	46	58	2,300	144
Your Daily Goal	3,874	484	129	194	2,300	145
Remaining	1,229	75	82	136	0	0
	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Sodium	Sugar
	*You've earned 1,944 extra calories from exercise today

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       Your Exercise Diary for:

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
Walking, 4.5 mph, very, very brisk pace	102	1,627
Walking, 4.5 mph, very, very brisk pace	28	372
MFP iOS calorie adjustment	N/A	-55
Daily Total / Goal	131 / 30	1,944 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	547 / 210	8,308 / 4,130

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total calories consumed 2645 calories

total calories burned (walking 10 miles) 1999 calories

total net calories 646 calories

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fitbit day 106
19002 steps

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Each year, Chabad of the Loop, Gold Coast and Lincoln Park, directed by my friend, Rabbi Meir Chai Benhiyoun erects a huge Chanukkah Menorah in Daley Plaza.  Daley Plaza is Chicago's premier civic center and permanent home of the famous Picasso statue.  The Menorah is 30 feet tall and 18 feet wide and it is designed in the traditional style of menorahs used by Chabad.  Although, I missed the lighting ceremony this year, as I was out-of-town, I was able to visit the menorah before Chanukkah with my Mom who was visiting from New York earlier this month.
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When Batman and Robin need to step it up a notch....They go...TO THE BATMOBILE!

When I need to a refresher in Judaism, or need to authentically celebrate a Jewish Holiday....I go...TO THE CHABAD HOUSE!

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This information comes from What's Not Wrong... a blog by Gary Anderson

Untitled (1967) by Pablo Picasso: What the heck is it? A horse? Seahorse? Dragon? That’s part of the fun and the puzzle involved in this huge sculpture so closely identified with Chicago. When the sculpture was dedicated in 1967, Mayor Richard J. Daley said, “We dedicate this celebrated work this morning with the belief that what is strange to us today will be familiar tomorrow.” Today the Picasso is familiar, but it’s no less strange. Chicago’s Picasso is interactive in a couple of ways. First of all, looking at the sculpture from the front (with your back to Washington Avenue) yields the most common view and the view that is most abstract. But if you walk toward the Daley Center and view the sculpture from roughly a 10:00 or 2:00 angle, you will more clearly see the silhouette of a woman. This is one of my favorite things to show students and visitors.   The Picasso is also highly interactive because you can sit on it, climb on it, and slide down it.

JACK'S DELI and RESTAURANT (JEWISH DELI - CLEVELAND)

As I have previously discussed, I am a creature of habit. I am trying to break the habit of being so predictable. For years, I bounced around among Burger King, McDonalds, Panera Express, White Castle and Subway. It was a rare day that I deviated from one of these five places for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The times that I did deviate, I actually managed to find a place to eat even less healthy - and that's not easy. Lately, I have been bouncing around restaurants offering far healthier choices: Jason's Deli, Panera Bread, Applebee's and Subway (making very different choices than I used to!)

Today, I met a customer for the first time in a very Jewish section of Cleveland, University Heights. I found myself in the heart of Jewish community with Jewish style food at a bunch of places. So, I decided to sample a new place today. I visited Jack's Deli and Restaurant a legendary restaurant in the Cleveland area for more than 30 years.

And although, I do not do a good job of keeping Kosher for Passover, I decided that I would order from the 'Passover' menu.  It was thoroughly enjoyable and it was simply fun to eat somewhere different.  When I visited my Mom last week, I had a lot of horseradish with gefilte fish with two meals.  My Mom's gefilte fish was store-bought, but the horseradish was homemade.  At Jack's the gefilte fish and the horseradish were both homemade.  (My Mom's horseradish was better - and no, I'm not just saying that because I know she reads my blog!)  Here was the menu that I selected from:

Jack's Deli and Restaurant  PASSOVER SPECIALS MENU

I started my lunch with a bowl of Matzo Ball Soup, and the matzo ball was the size of an apple! It was quite delicious.

Jack's Deli and Restaurant MATZO BALL SOUP

After my soup, I had the homemade gefilte fish with carrots, with horseradish and a piece of matzo.

Jack's Deli and Restaurant HOMEMADE GEFILTE FISH w/CARROTS and HORSERADISH

I may return to this restaurant again before my week in the Cleveland area comes to a conclusion...

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TUESDAY MENU

breakfast   Baymont Inn scrambled egg, two small sausages, SHMURAH MATZAH  280 calories
lunch         Matzo Ball Soup, Gefilte Fish w/carrots and horseradish, Matzo, pickle     421 calories
dinner        Campbell's Home Style Italian-Style Wedding Soup, Asparagus Spears     305 calories

total caloric consumption  1006 calories

calories burned
YMCA ELLIPTICAL 35 minutes (3936 strides)     443 calories
I specifically reserved a hotel room that allegedly had a fitness room.  The fitness room at my hotel was extremely bad.  There actually was an elliptical machine and it was totally useless as it simply was in great disrepair.  As it turned out, it was not a problem as nearby was a Y!

TUESDAY NET CALORIES    563 CALORIES


The walls of Jack's Deli and Restaurant were adorned with Yiddish words with their definitions.  Naturally, I took some pictures of them.  Shmooze, I knew.  Everything else, not so much!

RAW CHOCOLATE LOVE

At a party last week to honor the 80th Birthday of our Mom, my youngest brother made sure that everyone had the opportunity to sample his favorite chocolate.   RAW CHOCOLATE LOVE.   This description of the product comes from their website: rawchoclolatelovenyc.com.

Raw Chocolate Love LOGO

At Raw Chocolate Love we carefully choose the highest quality raw and organic ingredients to create an insanely healthy dark chocolate that is chock full of super foods and essential vitamins and minerals, including tocotrienols, a highly potent source of vitamin E that contains nutrients to properly fuel a healthy body.  Each bar of  Chocolate is free of preservatives, coloring and flavor extracts and is handmade with love and care over very low heat in order to retain maximum nourishment. Raw Chocolate Love is available in 17 all-natural, vegan flavors, each offering unique nourishing properties. Raw Chocolate Love is…  Raw • Organic • Kosher • Gluten Free •Preservative-Free • Free of Processed Ingredients • Non-Dairy• Vegan • Low Glycemic • Nutritious • Premier Quality • Soy Free • Full of Antioxidants • 100% Pure • An Aphrodisiac• Guilt Free 

I was able to resist the temptation to try this healthy treat.  I did bring home a bar and stick it in my refrigerator.   The website claims that the bar has a shelf life of 8 months while refrigerated.   I will have to pick the right time, to try this confection.   Perhaps, when I cross the boundary out of obesity. Perhaps when I get below 220 lbs - a weight that my body has not seen since the mid 1980's.   I don't know precisely when I will get the urge to try this chocolate.   For the time being, I will wait.

MONDAY MENU

breakfast   SHMURAH MATZO two scrambled eggs, two slices turkey 'bacon'    310 calories
lunch         Panera Bread TURKEY CHILI BOWL                                                  280 calories
dinner        Panera Bread Soba Noodle Bowl with Chicken                                     390 calories

total calories consumed 980 calories

CALORIES BURNED
4:45AM elliptical 32 minutes 465 calories

MONDAY NET CALORIES   515 CALORIES

WHAT A WHOPPER!

WHOPPERS: not the most effective way of adding protein to one's diet

It is probably a very good thing that I am not a regular Wal-Mart shopper.  Yesterday, on the way to Kansas City I stopped at a Wal-Mart to buy some zero calorie flavored Sparkling Water. I passed the candy aisle I decided to look at some labels. Now for most of my life I would be the guy who thought it would be a good idea to buy a box of WHOPPERS CHOCOLATE MALT BALLS as I settled into my seat to watch the latest James Bond or Star Trek movie at the cinema.   I never did enjoy paying nearly $4 for the privilege.  Wal-Mart offers this box of candy for only 98 cents.   This is the type of candy that a guy like me could easily devour in 15 minutes (and of course, still feel hungry and unsatisfied afterwards). You cannot imagine my surprise when I examined this 5 oz. box of Whoppers.

190 CALORIES PER SERVING nothing spectacular about that information - it's candy!

SERVING SIZE 18 MALT BALLS That's it? Why 18? For Good Luck?

SERVINGS PER CONTAINER 3.5 Let's be honest, one box of candy IS one serving!

TOTAL CALORIES FOR THIS TASTY CONFECTION 665 CALORIES  Not good, not healthy.
An actual BURGER KING WHOPPER is 650 calories  At least there you are getting some meat.

On the 'bright side' - THEY ARE KOSHER! 

For the past 19 days, I have consumed a fraction more calories in a whole day than what can be found in that box.   These are the types of 'food' items that really help a person balloon up to 309 lbs.  These are precisely the types of 'food' items that I will be avoiding in the future.   Earlier in one of my blogs, I had estimated that there must have been days when I consumed 5000 calories. (Perhaps I was underestimating)  

On the way to Kansas City yesterday I had mapped out a route that would direct me to a Jason's Deli in the St. Louis area.  This minor 9 mile detour rewarded me with a delicious 540 calorie lunch: Spicy Seafood Gumbo Bowl & Amy's Turkey Half Sandwich.  That was a very satisfying detour.

The hotel that I stayed in the first night only had one working fitness machine.  So I hopped onto something called a BOWFLEX TreadClimber TC5000 and logged thirty minutes.  This machine combined walking and step climbing. The machine estimated that I expended 140 calories. I used some new muscles that have been lying dormant for quite some time. It was a struggle to get to 30 minutes.

Before I checked out of my hotel this morning, I climbed back on the BOWFLEX and this time I reduced the speed of my workout and doubled my workout time.   I 'burned' 185 calories and this was the best workout that I have had since I started two weeks ago.  Everything about this specific workout was positive: time spent on machine, calories burned, feeling great afterwards.

HERSHEY COMPANY WHOPPERS pack a wallopping 665 calories!