After 2 1/2 weeks of IIN training

I've been having so much fun with my IIN course and materials, that I forget to take time out to blog about it!

One lecture I watched this week was presented by Denise Lamothe, called "Taming of the Chew."
It's based on her book, and it had many valuable ideas about dealing with emotional eating. Two in particular that attracted me was derailing negative thinking by using "In Reality" statements and the other was herbal remedies by Dr. Bach.

Her advice to short-circuit negative thinking that leads to emotional eating, is to listen to it, recognize it and then tell yourself  - for instance - "I want a cookie, but Reality is I'm not hungry. Reality is that it would make me feel awful physically AND emotionally."  I haven't tried the Bach's herbal remedies yet, but I've asked around and they have gotten good reviews. I intend to learn a little more before I try them out myself. Let me know if you've had any experience with them!

One of the dietary changes I've made, is to have more meatless meals. These are mostly nothing fancy - I'll stir fry whatever veggies we have on hand and then serve them over brown rice or whole wheat pasta. I still eat meat occasionally, but now I realize that it's not intended to be part of every single meal. Tonight I'm going  to fix roast veggies. I'll cut up big chunks of zucchini and squash, onion, carrots, and parsnip, toss them with olive oil and seasoning, cover them and roast them for a half hour, uncover them and cook 20 - 30 more minutes. I hope they're yummy!

As I set up my business web page as required by the school, I am considering incorporating a book club about health issues. I tend to believe that every diet, exercise, self-help, or healthy lifestyle book out there has something of value in it. I just purchased one on my Kindle today called Whitewash by Joe Keon. I think this will be my June book since it happens to be the first of the month.  If you would like to read along , please join my new facebook page for group discussion.

The other dietary change I've made is to let go of my reliance on dairy foods. I will still eat them as a treat, but I realize now they are not nutritionally relevant to me. When I was pregnant, I was drinking a glass in the middle of the night whenever I woke up hungry, plus at least 2 glasses during the day. Did you know that even the organic milk with "no hormones added" is fraught with bovine pregnancy hormones? These hormones are designed in nature to make for fat, healthy calves!  Ten years later, my calves are fat enough, thank you very much!  Also these hormones are linked to all sorts of problems such as prostate cancer, women's reproductive cancer, childhood obesity, diabetes, and more. And I haven't even opened the book yet. While Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution is pushing to schools to stop selling sugary flavored milks to kids, it looks like we should stop serving milk altogether! This idea shocked me when I first heard it from Harvard nutrition professor Walter Willette, but what he says makes a lot of sense. Look at his suggested "My Plate" visual recommendations for wellness.

It incorporates everything that has worked for me in the past!

checking in

I read The Four Agreements by don Miguel Ruiz recently and am incorporating as much as I can into my daily life. Look here in the near future for reflections on how they apply to health and wellness.

My mind is so distracted and disorganized lately. I've got to gain the focus I had 6 months ago. I really miss reading everyone's blogs, and yet I can't justify spending so much time online.

I really should weigh myself.

See today's post on my writing/opinion blog and tell me what you think.

Here's an analogy that I can sink my teeth into

"Obsession is a form of autism, a way to cover our ears and block out the background noise, a way to protect ourselves when teh situation feels vulnerable or dangerous or anxiety producing. Obsession is a way to change the channel when you don't like what's barreling across the screen of your mind."

Exactly! Eating, shopping, blogging, exercising, playing video games . . . it's all away of self-soothing or AVOIDING which is my habit.
So, can you guess what author said that . . . and what book? First correct guess gets the book free from Amazon courtesy of me.
(Sorry - Pam and Mandy not available for prize because they know the answer.)

Attention Fellow Book Nerds!

Chocolate and Vicodin is a must-read. Some great lessons about suffering in there. It's available on both Kindle and Nook so there  is no excuse for not getting it today - w/o even leaving the house.

That said, I'm really excited about three books that are coming out this month!


Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult who never fails to move me to tears. It became available today and I'm making myself wait until bedtime to download it in hopes that I can accomplish something before then. Once that book is on my Kindle, I'm a goner.

Lost and Found by Geneen Roth comes out later this month, March 22. I've already got it on my wishlist, though. I learn something about myself every.time.I.read.her.

Land of the Painted Caves by Jean Auel is released March 29. Are you KIDDING ME? I've been hungering for this book for nearly 20 years. I had given up hope that she'd ever write another of the Earth's Children series. The sixth and final book in the collection that began with Clan of the Cave Bear, it is reviewed as being under-plotted. It took 31 years for her to write it, so I'm reading it anyway. I can barely contain myself! What a GEEK!  I may just have to reread the entire series to gear up for it. The only series of big-fat books I've read all the way through besides Harry Potter. Oh, and Kirsten - if you're reading - they're kinda dirty so you'd prolly enjoy them.

Haven't had much to say

But I'll make up for that with a long meandering post today.

Pretty much still off track health-wise.

I get easily overwhelmed by life, as we've all witnessed. Today I accomplished a few tasks that I'd been avoiding and I"m glad they're completed.

Weather has really sucked - lots of snow days- a cancelled Chicago trip, lots of quality time with my wonderful Kiddo.

I'm so proud of her. She has somehow come through with a good heart. With all her snow days, and some kind donations from Auntie Mandy and others, she is making cat toys to be sold at our local no-kill shelter. Proceeds will go to help take care of the kitties until they find their furever homes. She also has a goal of donating $100 cash personally this year AND having all of her bday gifts be supplies for them (she also did this 2 years ago). So I am swollen with pride as well as paczki!

Let me know if you know anybody looking to buy a condo near Univ. of Chicago, it goes on the market tomorrow. We'll be sad to see it go in some ways . . . intended to hold onto it a few more years, but the cash will be nice and allow us to do some of the things we are dreaming of - even if one of them isn't making a profit on IL real estate. The Toledo house is still off the market, looks like Mr & Mrs Sweetie Sr. will be staying there during the warm months and heading to FL with the birds. I am hoping we will get Sweetie to go with us on a trip to FL to see his bro's family some time since there will be another "home away from home" there.   So, lots of real estate stuff happenin. Fun times. Stressful times. Completely overwhelming and unfocused times.

Today I went to BMV, 2 post offices, and 2 Clerks of Courts for some errands. Have I ever mentioned how much I avoid things? Anyway, I did all that and finally we can list that condo and I have sent the title to my old jalopy to Volunteers of America. I hope they find good use for it.

I finished reading "Chocolate and Vicodin" by Jennette Fulda and I really enjoyed it. Reading her books makes you feel like you are friends. She has a very personal way of drawing you in. I'm so glad that her aunt Nettie attends my church and introduced me to her books and website pastaqueen.com!

Read with me!

I've purchased a few new books on the Kindle . . . . anybody want to read with me?


Four Hour Body by Tim Ferriss
Unclutter Your Life in One Week by David Allen
Getting Things Done by David Allen

Now don't get me wrong - I'm not under the impression that any or all of these three books are going to change my life but they do seem like interesting reads.  And because I don't have enough crying in my life, I also got this Single Selection
Leaving Home by Jodi Picoult


So, what do you think of these books? Have you read them? Heard any reviews? Anybody wanna read along with me?

Feeling great

Snow day or not, I feel better than I have for a long while.

There must be some nasty virus around these parts - one symptom is throbbing gums. I thought it was a dental issue having recently had my teeth cleaned. The pressure of my CPAP mask made it worse. I was in tears. Tylenol or Voltaren wasn't touching the pain. It was miserable. I guess it could be sinus-related. Anyway, it's going away now. But Sweetie mentioned today his gums were throbbing.  Hmmm. . . I hope he doesn't feel as miserable as I did at it's worst.

I love blogland, but I am extremely behind in my reading. I'm behind in reading my books as well. Still, I keep adding blogs to my list. I should go through and clean some out, but I hate to lose any. NY day I went through and poked at a few that hadn't posted for a while and I'm glad they're back now, even if not regularly. It's so worth the wait. Anyhow, I need to find that awesome blog I had on my favorites that had the monthly weight loss book. There are so many on my list now that I'm having a hard time sorting through. If you can point me in the right direction, I'd appreciate it. Meanwhile, I'll search through my dashboard and see if I can find her that way.  It's Juli's Journey. I found her! Yay me!

I've made a few more local friends lately and am really happy to have found the "cool kids" around here. It takes time for friendships to blossom and finally it's happening. Certainly not neurotypical, my sense of humor and lack of grooming can cause assumptions to be made that aren't quite valid. I don't spend a lot of time trying to fit it, but I do very much want to make connections to people. So, even if I've been spending less time blogging, I have been building my support network and making new friendships IRL.

I think I'm taking a  Bob Ross painting class in March. Who wouldn't want to learn to make "happy little clouds"?  It's on a Friday. I hope my kid has school that day. The more I think about it the more I want to do it.

Kiddo is dining out with friends tonight and I've been having a PJ day. Maybe I can get in some exercise and then change into new jammies. Who knows what tomorrow will bring, but hopefully it will be nice enough for the local "Global Summit" which I'm really looking forward to attending and helping with our Kids For Peace group. I'm such a hippie.

Sunday Funday

ok, that was sarcasm.

Looks like a big snowstorm heading our way. Most everyone's way really. Maybe not Sue who is winding down summer in Oz, but everyone else.

I picked up Cook This, Not That over the weekend. I'm excited about some of the breakfast recipes. I have to make a shopping list and hope we're not snowed in before I get to the store.

We have this super cool place called The 577 Foundation in our little burb. Among many other very cool things you can recycle books there and get new ones. I hit them up for a coupla cookbooks Friday while my daughter was in a class. Then that night we were invited to a "book swap". Why have I never ever thought of these before?  All the kids and parents who wanted to participate brought books to give away and got to take some as well. I am a self-confessed book whore. And if I can get one free. All the better. Mandy will be shocked - I gave up my Jodi Picoult collection (ok most of it) today for the cause. Oh yeah - and the books that aren't picked up, the hostess dontates to the 577 Foundation so it's all good. If I want them back I know where to find them.

Oh my gosh, facebook is FUNNY tonight. Hard to stay in a bad mood with friends who are as freaky weird crazy creative as mine. I look forward to waking up to more craziness like that in the morning  before I hit the gym, then do my wed volunteering early because of the storm, then shop all before kiddo gets off the bus. Big day!

Thin Lanie vs. Fat Lanie

I've been continuing to read along in the book A Course In Weight Loss.   I've been doing a pretty good job of setting my judgements aside so that I can read and learn objectively, applying lessons to my own belief system and adapting them into my life.  It's been interesting! The goal of the 2nd assignment was to integrate the separate parts of your mindset that tend to war over health goals. Accepting that they exist and bringing them together with the intent to heal is the intent. So they ask that the reader write from one point of view a letter to the opposing self, and then to shift paradigms and respond to the letter.  Here's what I got.

Dear Heavy Lanie;

Let go of me will you!?!  You're bringing me down! Suffocating me with fat is not protecting me. It takes a lot more than food to heal these wounds. Whether pain is physical or emotional, it i rarely alleviated by sugar and fat.  You are an embarassment to our daughter and our husband. And to me. And the rest of my family and friends. Nobody wants to be seen with you. Heck, your high school friend actually asked you why you "let yourself go". You are keeping me from living the happy life that I crave.

In desperaton,
LaniePainie

Re-reading this as I typed, I'm quite suprised by the self loathing that is seeping through there. I really didn't realize how bad I feel about my weight until I saw it in print. I rarely think about it it, in fact. No, that's not true - I push it from my mind and avoid thinking about it because it's too difficult. Sigh.  And now onto the response from my fat mindset!

Dear Healthy Lanie;

All these years, feeding you was the only way I knew how to take care of you. Never having been mourished and comforted myself, I had no experience on which to draw. Now that we are learning more about what it takes to be healthy, I'm doing better! You should give me some credit for that , you know. After all, I'm the one who got you started on the healthy route that you've resisted so long.  It's hard to accept that we've "left ourselves go" when we never really "had it together" in the first place. It's just that our outward appearances didn't reflect it as well back in the 1980s. If you remember, you weren't happy as a thin person either. There's clearly a lot more work to be done besides just working on body shape here. If you'll stop criticizing me constantly, maybe we could work on it together . . . ?

Good Books! Good Books!

I have been really grooving with the nonfiction this last month or so. And this weekend I found another blog that I'm really excited about!  Fellow book geeks, please come over and join me at Juli's Journey to check out her January book pick: A Course in Weight Loss by Marianne Williamson. I'll be adding it to my <3 Kindle <3 later today!

I have often wished to have some sort of online book club where I could read and learn from what other people read and share from books. Slowly, slowly, I am building up a community of fellow book geeks and with my new best friend Kindle at my side, it can only get better!

So, here are the books I've read lately that really made me think:



Shit My Dad Says by Justin Halpern
This is one hilarious book. I found myself quickly wishing that I had a dad just like Justin's. I appreciate the directness and honesty with the way he expresses himself. Never unkind at the core, but not sugar coating it either, Justin's dad says what is on his mind.

This is Not the Story You Think It Is by Laura Munson
This is one of those must-own books. At the beginning, Laura is [like myself] a collector of other people's wisdom. She talks about the stack of books at her bedside and how she looks to them for inspiration for eing her best self. Armed with this wisdom, she faces the possiblility of the end of her marriage. Acceptance and letting go of controlling others is what it's all about. I highly recommend reading it and finding out for yourself how it's done.

The Shack by William P. Young
This is the only work of fiction on my list but it is FABULOUS! I resisted reading it knowing it was Chritian-based and I thought it would be a big ol' Bible thumpin' extravaganza. Not to say that it isn't centered around the teachings of the Bible. It is. There's a lot to learn and this is an awesome summation of some of the most important *IMO* parts of its teachings. I learned so much about compassion, forgiveness, and love in this book that I will henceforth recommend to everybody - regardless of religion or lack thereof.
Lies I Told My Kids by Karen McQuestion
I'm still in the process of reading this one but it's  a real gem. I haven't read her fiction yet, but I've downloaded lots. It's less than $2 on Kindle. I can't believe I haven't ever heard of her before. Clever and funny, she describes a laundry list of things we all tend to think we won't do - like lie to our children - but when reality hits the fan, it happens.

The Craggy Hole in My Heart and the Cat Who Fixed It by Geneen Roth

I thought this would be a book about grieving, and in part it is. But the real lessons in this book revolve more around seeing people as who they really are - limitations and all - rather than who we need them to be. Especially with our parents, we tend to construct certain chariciatures of them when we are children that aren't especially realistic. When we have to face that reality, it can bring on a lot of pain. Working through that pain and disappointment is the only way to work through it.


I decided not to link directly to each out of laziness, but if they are all available on Amazon or you can see them easily on my "Shelfari" link in my sidebar.  Please, let me know your opinions of any of these books, or other books  you think I might enjoy.

I haven't done a book post for a while

And you know I love me some books

And I loves me my new Kindle. Best gift EVAH for somebody who likes immediate satsifaction. Gimme Gimme! I love it so much that I was mad because Sweetie wouldn't let me go sit and wait for the oil change in the Prius. The thought of an hour and a half alone with my K was sooooooooo tempting!

What have you read recently that you've loved?

Here's my quick top 5 list:
(I intend to come back later and fill in links and details)

The Craggy Hole in My Heart and the Cat Who Fixed It by Geneen Roth
Shit My Dad Says
This is Not the Story You Think It Is
The Shack
Lies I Told My Kids by Karen McQuestion

For now, I gotta whip myself into shape and head to church. We leave in 18 minutes. Prolly time to get out of my PJs and stop being a lump :)

I'm so ready to hibernate

I'm really struggling right now with the urge to "retreat" from the world. I just love being at home and alone for a while in the winter, not driving around after dark that comes way too early, not facing the maniacal holiday crowds. Just me, Sweetie, the Kiddo and all the Christmas cookies we can eat. Yum . .. cookies.

Sore throat is sneaking in, and the fatigue is extra extra bad.  I ended up deciding to be a lump today for most of the day. although I did go and pay my traffic ticket - this was a anxiety trauma of proportions that I am not yet ready to discuss. I also took kiddo to clarinet lessons. We had a good long snuggle tonight afterwards which is just what I needed. I was surprised she was still long enough.

So, tomorrow is day 3 of the first week of the 200 squat challenge. Part of me wants to put it on hold until my hemorrhoid problem clears up, in case that is what is aggravating it. However, I feel no symptoms of it when I'm performing said squats and I really do hate to be a quitter. Plus, Mandy would never let me hear the "end" of it. Oh, that reminds me - kiddo decided to showoff yesterday and do 100 squats after hearing us discuss the program. I warned her - quietly, true - to be careful and not overdo it. Yeah, she's hurting today. Thus, the snuggles.

I also got asked to come back to volunteering at the church office after the first of the year, and that is a good thing. I think if I'm required to be "out there" and doing for others, I am less likely to stay home and wallow. I need to be needed, I suppose.

Laying around today, I read David Sedaris' new book. For anybody with an incredibly sick sense of humor, I highly recommend it. It's called Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk and it's a series of twisted animal stories. If you're a normal person, you probably wouldn't like it. But then, you probably would like me anyway so why are you even reading this? Shah!

Kinda random

Doing well today so far. On track with food and did some light exercise first thing in the morning - trying to work that into my routine. At least if I do a little in the morning, it should give me the boost I need to get through the day and if I can work some in later, HOORAY!

Lots of laundry to do today, I've been slacking. I really need to get this house in order. I think I will feel oh so much better once I get my living room back.

I finished reading The Shack this afternoon and wow - what a powerful book. Even for a non-Christian such as myself, it is full of great messages and it really doesn't shove Christianity down your throat the way I thought it might. It's a wonderful story, quite different than I thought it would be. There's on paticular chapter I'm already looking forward to re-reading, about forgiveness which is always a hot topic for me.

Kid will be home from school soon and we will find a snack. So far today I've had my pepsi, a Sweet & Salty bar, half a peanut butter snadwich and a cup of watermelon. I've downed over 120 oz of water, done some emergency grocery shopping, made lunch for hubby, and had a little nap. For the next few hours it'll be all about the kiddo, homework, clarinet practice, maybe a fire in the fireplace and some knitting after Sweetie comes home from work.  Or, if I'm lucky I'll talk them into playing the Harry Potter version of CLUE. Cold and rainy, a nice fire-sitting night.

Pain

Sometimes when we are so engulfed in and overwhelmed by our own pain, it's really hard to keep things in perspective.

This is one lesson I've gleaned from my reading of The Shack already. It's sort of like looking past your pain to find your joy. Earlier I gave advice to another blogger that when she is so far down so lonely and desperate that one thing to do is to focus on service to others. Not your immediate family, but people that you don't have connections to like the sick or the homeless. There are so m any needy people and critters that need help. Volunteering is one way I get "out of my own way" and "look  past the pain" on my down days when I'm really just ready for a big wallow in the puddle-muck of self  pity.

It'd be funny to say "pain" is my middle name, given my blogger id, but it's more that I"m a pain in the ass than my sould being "a little black spot on the sun today". I've consciously worked hard all my life to get around the pain of my childhood. The grief for the little girl that I was can be overwhelming for sure. It can make me lose my perspective, and lose my power. I have my days, but mostly they are good.

Look past the pain, find your joy. It's not always easy, but it is doable.

Hungry!

I haven't decided what I'm going to eat yet, but here it is 8 pm, lunch was at 1.  I have been waiting to become hungry - something I've been neglecting to do lately. Hunger feels good. I'm alive and it's time to take in some nourishment. A little whole grain with some Nutella sounds  pretty good, or maybe some chicken noodle soup. Simple, warm, nutritious.

Slipping back into old ways and eating for reasons other than hunger was not getting me to my goal. Tomorrow I'll be checking in with my doctor, discussing supplements, and getting a kick in the tush to get moving some more.

Wonderful day today - family time was precious as we gathered around the coffee table in the family room, fireplace blazin' and played Settlers of Catan. I lost badly, wanted a rematch, and was politely ignored. Lots of smiling going on :-)

I started reading The Shack last night and have been sucked right in. Nobody told me that there was a tragedy involved and a lost child or I wouldn't have picked it up. Now I have to follow it through and see how it could possibly end up okay. I still fully expect to roll my eyes, but so many people have read it that it's become one of those cultural discussion points that I don't want to be left out of . Look Mandy, I ended a sentence with TWO prepositions!

Hot 100 Update: embrace failure

I'm not really embracing it, but besides my outstanding job on fruit  lately, I've not been doing well on my Hot 100 goals. I am so sleepy all the time that I'm usually in bed by 10 pm anyway but if i nap too much during the day I am up reading until midnight. I've been playing  around. Exercising - bah! eating when I'm not hungry, YOU BET!  playing around losing and gaining the same five pounds? Great fun! Bloggin 2x daily? I missed a whole day and nobody noticed so why bother? Chores? whatev.  The good news is I have a Dr. appointment first thing Monday morning and that'll prolly get me going. I HAVE made some progress since I saw her 2 months ago. . . I think. And I'll ask her all about what kinds of supplements she recommends to make sure they don't interact with anything i'm already taking.

Nothing really pushed me into this rut and I'll find my way out soon enough. The only explanation I have is that I was really REALLY close to weighing less than Sweetie. When I can truck along fine for a long while but when I notice I'm close to a goal, and especially if I say it to anybody out loud - then it's like the expectation is there that I will meet it quickly and my inner child or whoever rebels against it. Every time I think I have it figured out, then I just stop caring.  I haven't even been reading blogs much. had a great book to read, though.  I'll have a review for that prolly later.  I haven't even updated my Shelfari yet. I think I need to reread Women Food and God!

And so there ya have it. I'm all "why bother?" right now. Eating for fun, sleeping even more, exercising hardly at all . ..  but I am still weighing in every morning which is the only thing that's kept me within that 5 lb range - I'm sure of it.

Choosing to end suffering

I'm reading a GREAT book right now, recommended by one of my IRL friends, and not about weight loss. Or is it? As I've learned from reading other blogs, almost ANYTHING can be related to weight loss. This book is chock full of wisdom.

It's called This is Not the Story You Think it Is by Laura Munson. And right now? It's bargain priced at like $8 instead of the $25 I probably shelled out for it.

I'm not giving away anything by saying that on the first page, her husband leaves. Maybe he doesn't love her anymore - is incapable of love. They've been together for a long time, and have young children.  But she makes up her mind that she is not going to suffer, or "wallow" as I would call it. She's not spending her time feeling sorry for herself or desperately clinging to her husband who is clearly having his own crisis. And so far, she's not stuffing her face with chocolate cake, brownies, or chips. Mmmmm. .. . chips. 

I'm just begining the book, as I said, but it's got some great quotes and wonderful pieces of wisdom in it. If I had my way, I"d curl up with it all day today and absorb page after page. Alas, the family will wake in a while and want me to be part of it. Which, I admit, I love.

How many calories does knitting burn?

For the first time in several months, kiddo and I went to a fiber-arts club that meets monthly at our church. Now, I only know the "garter" stitch which is straight knitting, no purling or cabling or anything fancy. I can make dishcloths or scarves, or any other type of quadrangle you can think of. I'm not as cool as Ice Queen but it is a goal!

Back in January when Kid and I were taking our knitting class, I began a scarf for my Sweetie for Valentine's Day. I plan to finish that tomorrow or the next day. Timely, eh? Well, why are you suprised? If I had any self discipline I never would've weighed 289 lbs!  So today I sat and knitted for about three and  a half hours. Coincidentally, it is one of the recommendations for comforting yourself without food in this book. I guess they don't take into account that some of the other knitters might bring brownies. Evil, evil knitters!  We brought honey crisp apples and bosc pears, though, from the farmer's market so we ensured healthy choices.

I'm ready to learn more knitting to keep my hands busy in front of the fire this winter without eating. One of my favorite "church ladies" asked me to help knit things for the Holiday Craft Bizarre including a "lump of coal" from a pattern she is going to copy for me. Wait til I confess to her that I can't read a pattern. I bet she'll help!  If I ever finish this dastardly scarf, I'm going to allow myself to start reading and learning from this book. Maybe some day I will write a book called "knit yourself thin!" and make a hundred bucks  - or more!

Nighty Night

Bedtime is coming WAY too early for me. It's only 2nd night of going to bed by 10. Hmmm. . . considering taking my laptop to bed with me but that pretty much defeats th purpose.

So glad the mini-cheer thing is over.

Looks like I'll be able to mail out the give-away books next week. Sorry for the delay. I have no excuse except for total lack of organization.

And the winners are . ..

Finding the Thin Within wins Half Assed by Jenette Fulda (Pasta Queen)




Laura Hartness wins Women Food, and God by Geneen Roth



Michele wins Such a Pretty Face by Cathy Lamb

 
 
All entries were great and much appreciated. Names were put in  a "hat" and drawn randomly. Please email me  your snail mail address and proper name and I will get your winnings to you. This may take some time, especially for Half Assed, as I need to send Jeneen your book for autograph personally, but will be worth the wait.
 
Thanks EVERYBODY for playing :)