Electric Bills

Has anyone ever really looked at all the dumb stuff they charge you for on your electric billing my National Grid bill and wanted to understand what all the crazy charges are that I'm paying. One says transition charge: company payments to its wholesale suppliers for terminating its wholesale arrangements.

I didn't ask them to terminate their arrangements! Why am I paying for this? Am I understanding this? It sounds like the $275 your cell phone company makes you pay. But I don't tack that on for someone else to pay! What gives?

Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose

Okay everyone, I know most of you on here don't  care about how much trash you throw away each week , never mind recycling, but I do.

I think though, that I've started to get a little crazy about it.  Some people might just say that I've always been crazy about trash and recycling, so those people will think I've become a lot crazier.  I just think I've become more creative with the process.

I try not to throw away more than one small bag per week.  We pay about $3 per bag, even though I use to only throw one bag away when it was "free" trash pick-up.  So when my husband opened the new bag of dog food I told him NOT to throw it in the bag because it would take up too much room.  So he left it on the floor.  

This morning I went to cutting it in little pieces to make it fit better in the bag.  Now mind you, not little, little pieces.  I'm not THAT crazy. Then I noticed that it had 3 layers.  The inside and the outside layers were plastic coated so those had to be thrown in the trash.  But then there was a middle layer that was just paper.  So I got so excited that I could recycle it.  Now I'm thinking that the next bag of dog food I get, we can actually use the inside paper as wrapping paper.  It seems as strong as shipping paper and such a waste to not be used.

So next time someone gets a gift from me wrapped in shipping paper, it just might be from a dog food bag.

And soon I would like to be able to have only two small trash bags per month and not that much recyclable.  Because its not just good to recycle, it's also good to not have any trash or things leftover to recycle.

Does anyone have any cool things they reuse?

Handicap Bathroom Stalls

Is it okay to use a handicap stall if you're not handicap? Or is it like the parking spots that you should never use?

It's different than parking because you have to wait in line to use a bathroom. And would someone that needed that stall really cut the line?

And is it still okay to call it a "handicap" stall? Isn't it handi-capable?

I was waiting in line the other day and didn't go into an open stall until the lady behind me told me to.

What are your thoughts on this? Are there rules?

Moving

We finally passed papers on February 7th. We breathe a sigh of relief. I thought we would be moving all our stuff soon after that. But NO, my husband wanted to rip out the rugs in three rooms and put down hardwood flooring.

It's a good idea because a cat use to live here. And if you know anyone that has a cat, you know that they make sure people know they were there. The smell was horrible pulling up the rugs and the stains were everywhere.

I advise anyone making changes in their home to work on the rooms you need first. My husband decided to finish the second bedroom before any other room. aargh!

My dogs are not liking the rug removal.

More Important Than Exercising...

Stretching!!  This is important to do in the morning before and after you wake up.  And also at night.  If you sit at a desk all day you can get up and stretch midday!  It only takes a few minutes everyday, but after a few weeks you will notice a big difference.  And it's free. http://exercise.lovetoknow.com/Free_Stretching_Exercises_Illustrated

You can use furniture to rest your legs on or a door frame for your arms when you stretch.

I have felt so much better just from stretching.

I Found An Awesome Cereal

I've been eating Special K since I can remember, then I stopped for awhile because I wasn't happy with the taste anymore.  Then I found Special K Blueberry.  If you know anything about me, I will eat anything with blueberries in it.  Except a piece of meat hahaha!


Well I was eating that for awhile, but my teeth starting hurting because of the sugared blueberries, but I didn't want to stop eating their cereal.  Then I came upon their newest endeavor, Special K protein cereal.  It has a whopping 10 grams of protein per serving.  And if you're like me, one serving (3/4 cup) is not ever enough.  So I eat two servings and get 20 grams of protein.  Which for a vegan is an awesome amount for one meal.  It has a very pleasant light cinnamon taste.  And the flakes are heavier than the regular Special K so it feels substantial when eating.  There are 120 calories per serving and the regular stuff has 110.  But for the added protein, it is well worth it.

They say starting your day with protein is a great thing because it helps get you going.  Now that I have a quick and tasty way to do that I should be on my way to losing more weight.  And Special K is an awesome midday or after dinner snack.  Just enough sweetness to make you feel like you've had a treat.

(Kellogg's has not given me anything to tout there products)

You can also go online and join their site.  http://www.specialk.com/ Every time you buy one of their products you enter the code from the inside of the box and you can enter sweepstakes or get free stuff.  Since I buy a few boxes a week this will add up rather quickly.  It also has lots of other fun stuff on the site so check it out.  And you can also get coupons.

Getting a Flatter Belly!

Giving up bread hasn't been has hard as I initially thought it would be.  It helps that I buy bread I don't like for my husband and it also helps that I like bread with vegan butter, so I don't buy the butter.

My head has been clearer since I gave it up.  But I don't know if it's because I am having less carbs or because I have upped my fruits and vegetables to around 10 per day.

It's really amazing how quick your belly will start to shrink when you stop the bread.  The pounds and other inches I need to lose will be much harder to do, but if all you want to do is make your belly flatter, give up the bread.

I've lost 1.5 inches in 5 days!  Woot Woot!

I have done the Engine 2 Diet, but it is really strict.  It's vegan without any oil or sugar.  It does have some good recipes in there, so you might want to try them out.  http://engine2diet.com/

And always remember that you can get cookbooks or food lifestyle books at your local library.  And some libraries have exercise DVD's.

The Best Free Weight Loss Site (not a scam)

In February, 2008 I was googling yoga to find a studio. I ended up finding an awesome weight loss sight. It's called Sparkpeople.com!


I was living away from my friends and family and this site not only helped me lose weight, it also helped me meet people in my new area and helped me find others to exercise with.

Since moving back home I have gained some of the weight back and have again turned to this wonderful site for weight loss help.  I've always gone on the site to check in on friends or post food every once in awhile.

Nowadays it has an app which makes it great on the run. You can add all your foods for the day or of foods you eat.  It tallies up all the vitamins and minerals that you get in your food and tells you how much sodium and calories, etc. you have left for the day.  It has groups you can join and people you can talk to online or meet in person.  You can even blog and others can read them, or you can keep them private.  It's all individually done as to what you want to accomplish.  And recently they've added a barcode scanner.

It has video exercises and places to ask questions to professionals.  Sparkpeople even has menus.  They have plenty of vegetarian and vegan recipes too, which is a reason I liked it from the start.

As I add things on Sparkpeople, I will also be updating my blog on my progress. Having it all out there will give me no place to hide. Which is what I have realized I've been doing with my weight.

It's funny how the larger you get, the more invisible you become to people around you. It's like they're embarrassed for you and don't know what to say so they pretend you're not around.  Or maybe it's because I feel uncomfortable being heavy so I don't put myself out there.

I don't usual want people to see the real me because they might not like what they see. But as I've aged I have realized that it doesn't matter.  I am the only one that needs to approve of myself.  No matter what I weigh, I will always be a crazy, spiritual, open-minded individual wether you like it or not.

If you happen to join the site, my name is Ravon27.

Have an awesome day and please be good to yourself and others!

A trick to save calories!

When preparing a salad, add less dressing than usual a little while before you eat. After adding dressing make sure you mix it well.

I can use half the dressing this way!

The Flu

Hi everyone.  I had the flu since Christmas Day and am just feeling better.  I have a few things that I would like everyone to do when they are sick, or better yet, have a family member do it for you.  Take some disinfectant wipes, or make your own with vinegar or bleach, and wipe down things you touch in your home.  This should be done while you are sick and definitely after when you're well.

I wipe down doorknobs, sink handles, light switches on the wall & on lamps, computer keys, computer mouse, cellphone, landline (the whole thing), tv remotes, stove dials, cabinet handles, draw handles, refrigerator handle, microwave knobs, steering wheels and radio knobs and car door handles, just to name a few.

Then remember to throw out your toothbrush and get a new one.  I always buy packs of 8 and switch them out whenever we're sick.

I'm wondering how many people that read this also had the flu?  How long did it last?  Did any of you get the flu shot or are going to get it?  I know that the numbers they have on the news are only a small portion of people that got the flu.  So many people either don't have insurance, or figure that the hospital really can't do anything for you.  I was surprised there were so many that stayed in the hospital.  I would have thought it was only the elderly or young children.

When I was watching the news the other night, I saw a woman that looked like she was in her 30's.  She was sitting up in her hospital bed and was talking and looked fine.  Then they went on to say that they were running out of beds at most hospitals.

I hope this post finds all of you feeling well.  And if you didn't have the flu yet, you can still go around and disinfect all the things in your home.  This way if anyone thinks of bringing germs into your house you will get rid of them.

I didn't feel the symptoms till after I had been around family kissing and hugging everyone.  I was really surprised that no one got sick from me.  The only people that I know of that were sick were my three boys and one of their girlfriends.  And they were the ones that I caught it from.

Have a great weekend everyone!

My Addiction And How I Deal With It!

I have realized that I am addicted to toast. It may sound like a funny addiction, but it has made me gain weight rather quickly.

So I have decided that when we move, I will put my toaster away. My husband has also agreed to this!

I will keep you updated on my progress! And if you have any ideas on how you deal with a strange addiction I would love to hear about it. Or if you need an idea of how to deal with one, maybe I can help.

I must lose 60 pounds to be healthy!

After Holiday Depression

They say that around the holidays there is more depression than any other time of year.  I also think that there is a lot after the holidays.  There is such a build up to each holiday that after the presents are open and the decorations are taken down, there is a lot of let down.  I believe this is true even for people that got what they wanted.

I suggest that you start a hobby, or start the plans to change your house around.  Maybe even volunteer.  Volunteering during the holidays is a really great idea, but there are so many people that do it at that time that sometimes there's no more room.  No one is out looking for volunteer opportunities after the holidays.  A great website that will help you pick a place to volunteer is http://www.volunteermatch.org/.

The best way to get out of your own head and feel better about yourself is to help others with their problems.

I hope everyone had a happy holiday season and is looking forward to a wonderful 2013!