IF.IS.IT.

It’s been about 50 days since my last post on Life: from A to Z and I’m happy to be back and coming at you with some of my latest news…

“I” is for Intermittent Fasting

I’m happy, and almost reluctant, to report that I’ve been experimenting with Intermittent Fasting for just over a month and my weight is back down to what is was at the pre-COVID mark. While that number is still too large (see my old progress report here), it is TWELVE pounds lighter than I was when I started the 16 hour fasts in early March.

Bottom line: My weight is where it was on March 9th, 2020, right before the pandemic shut me down and binge eating and television watching became my new go-to sport.

That being said, I am SUPER jazzed about bringing back my New Lifestyle, New Me series because I’ve been making some life changing discoveries. First and foremost, when I spent my time and energy focusing on food—as in what I should eat, when I should eat, and how much I should eat (not to mention macronutrients and all of that other stuff!!)—then “food” became my primary focus, which made it almost impossible to NOT eat. Food, food, FOOD… THAT is what was ruling my mind this time last year.

I don’t want to get into any particulars on intermittent fasting because it’s so popular these days and all one has to do is Google search it or look for smart phone apps and all of the details and info are right there at your fingertips. What I WILL say is that fasting, unlike dieting, has allowed my brain to NOT think about food. With that little reprieve, I’ve been able to put my mind to better use by learning about cravings, habit loops and reward-based learning (Dr. Judson Brewer has some great stuff).

It’s amazing what we can accomplish when we DON’T put our minds to it. Ha!

Anyway, that’s about all for now. I’ll be back soon enough. I have 3 weeks left of classes and then I’ll be graduating with my Bachelor’s degree!! Yipeee!! Summer will be a time for fun, laughter and celebration and—God willing—a time to throw off the old masks and live life to the fullest.

About the Image

Speaking of masks, I created the featured image for this post because the mask is supposed to represent “fasting,” not COVID. That’s why my nose is exposed. To add to that, the image of me was taken quite a while ago, maybe 10 years or so, and when I found it I was thrilled at how thin and healthy I looked. I added the mask (obviously) with Photoshop, and then did a little manipulating with some of my cool iPhone apps to make it look like a sketch. I’m sure that at the time the photo was taken I probably hated the image. That’s just the way it always is (and I’m sure I speak for many women on that).

And I think I learned something when I found that old thing hiding in a soon to be deleted digital folder—I learned that we’re not always as “bad” as we believe we are. We think that we are too fat, too old, too skinny, too wrinkled, too young, too short, too tall… and the list goes on and on… but when we look back with fresh eyes we realize that all we’ve really been is WAY TOO hard on ourselves. So just stop.

“There is nothing in nature that blooms all year long, so don’t expect yourself to do so either.”

AUTHOR UNKNOWN

Have a beautiful evening and I’ll see you all soon!

—Janet

It’s My Party

Life is like a balloon. If you never let yourself go, you’ll never know how far you can rise.

I’m featuring a new portrait today, inspired by Ragtag’s Word of the Day: Party. My great niece looks a little shy back there, hiding behind all of those balloons, but don’t let her appearance fool you. She’s a bundle of energy and excitement, a constant source of entertainment, and she never tires… kind of like a traveling party! Anyway…

It’s a little after noon right now and the thermometer just hit 102 degrees. All I can say is… I’m melting………

That’s about all for now.
Have a beautiful day!

The Stranger

Be kind to the stranger,

The one you don’t recognize.

An untold story simmers deep,

Beneath her burning eyes.

Lend an ear to the stranger,

Hear how her heart has bled,

Offer comfort, give her strength,

As she travels the path ahead.


I have to say that the reason I worked on this portrait today was that I’m finally losing it. I think we all have our breaking point, and I may have hit mine today. Things got a little crazy. I swear a lot of it has to do with all of the negativity that is encircling me lately. It seems like everyone wants to make a point, everyone wants to be right, and everyone is so angry. I can feel my body tensing up more and more every day as I listen to, and read, so many words. I know that light is right ahead, ready to shine, but it’s just not close enough.

Anyway, enough about me. I thought the art and poetry would help change my mood, by putting some of my focus outward—thinking about what other people go through. My portrait really is of a stranger, and it got me to thinking about how we all see each other, and how we treat each other.

I’d love to share more right now but it’s late—so I’ll be back tomorrow. I haven’t been out much because I can’t breath in those damn masks, but it may be time to revisit the New Lifestyle, New Me project very soon. And I still have a short story to finish! That’s something to look forward to!

So, that’s about all for now. Until next time… Peace & Love to you ALL.


Word of the Day Challenge: Untold

Ragtag Saturday: The Path Ahead