And I'm Off

And my journey has begun, Tuesday morning, December 27, 2012.  I didn't go out with the bang I thought I might.  No jumbo chocolate cake, or big family toast to my final meal.  I didn't even request my favorite foods for dinner, I think that could have been too many foods to capture on a single table or eat in one night. The point after all is to leave them behind, so why have them fresh on my pallet.

Instead my final dinner was a holiday family affair.  We had our traditional Christmas Eve dinner, the day after so Debby could join.  It was Dad's Salmon Chowder, no lefse, just Dad's bread.  Had I been going for the blowout, I would have made the lefse myself.  And while everyone was raving about the rice pudding, I kept with what I knew, Green Stuff, aka Watergate Salad.  Since I've never really had rice pudding, no point in creating something new for me to crave.  But there was plenty of drinking, and that would have happened regardless, because Debby was home.

Tuesday morning, I got up and prepared my first liquid diet meal, Oatmeal.  It was disgusting!!!  Maybe it would have helped if I liked plain oatmeal a bit more, but this didn't resemble oatmeal at all.  Instead of being thick mush, this was a puddle of grey water with a few oats floating in it.  I tried adding cinnamon, but that didn't help, maybe the cinnamon was stale.  Then I tried adding some stevia for sweetness, that helped a little, very little.  In the end I gave up and dumped two deplorable tablespoons out.  They were also two valuable tablespoons, because when you are eating so little, every drop fills your stomach.

The first day sucked orangoutang balls.  The food was no good. The soup I had for lunch was just as bad as the oatmeal for breakfast.  It tasted like it the primary ingredient was sawdust. I went to the Muppets with my parents and got up to pee no less then four times, and I may have missed the best parts.    And not surprisingly, I was hungry, constantly.  But finally that night, I tasted a glimmer of hope.  The chocolate shake was delicious.  I might be able to survive on chocolate shakes alone.

Now it is day four, I haven't cheated, and I'm enjoying those chocolate shakes.  I won't say I'm thriving yet, I'm doing a lot of sleeping.  I'm fatigued, and until my body has adjusted to the lack of calories, I might as well sleep.  After all, when I'm sleeping I don't notice my stomach growling.

It's Beginning to FEEL a Lot Like Christmas

OK, so I was a little disappointed a month ago when David told me I should wait to start the program until I got home from Hawaii.  Then I thought about it, if I should wait until after Hawaii, then I should wait until after my birthday.  And if I should wait until after my birthday, then I should wait until after Christmas.  Given that I had waited six months to get to the point where they tell me about the program, that is a LOT of waiting.  So I guess what is a few more weeks.

Well thank God I waited.  The treats at the office are coming in two by two on a daily basis.  I try eating the pears, but they were gone quick.  And then my obsession came in, chocolate covered dried cherries.  Followed by Moose Munch.  I don't stand a chance with all these goodies around.  And today, a Danish pastry.  I'm Scandinavian for crying out loud, I can't resist a DANISH!!!  One more AND, I had to enter the bake off, AND win.

I think on the plus side, by the time this is all over, I'll be treated out and ready for some detox.