Weight Loss Secret?

Quit drinking coke… At least, that’s what this woman said.

Lent

Ash Wednesday snuck up on me. Even as friends were discussing mardi gras parties and fat tuesday, it didn’t hit me. So, I had to think fast about what I would give up this year.

In years past, I have given up caffeine (more on that in a minute), but after discussing with a colleague at work, I have decided this year that I will give up eating on campus. I spend a lot of money and eat a lot of calories that are all unnecessary. So, for 40 days, I will be eating what I bring from home, for both breakfast and lunch.

Now, you may have noticed that I haven’t posted anything in quite some time. I haven’t figured out how to break the news that I have fallen off the wagon, perhaps permanently. Yes, I have been drinking coffee, coke, coke zero and loving every sip. The caffeine free life just isn’t for me. However, that doesn’t mean that I have given up on the idea that you can make a big difference with a small change. So that’s what I’m going to do with this years lent as well.

Every day, I buy my morning coffee, breakfast and lunch at the cafeteria at work. This adds up to be both calories and money that I don’t need to spend. So, I’m committing to avoid that cafeteria for the next 40 days.

All money saved from bringing my breakfast and lunch to work with me everyday will be donated to a good cause.

Which good cause? Well, Handsome has made me kind of partial to Pit bull rescues at the moment, so all savings will go to a reputable no-kill shelter. You can double that amount if one can take in my precious Handsome dog.

Handsome’s Story

One day in mid-January, I was out running with my two labs. There was nothing out of the ordinary about this particular day, or this particular run, until I ran into a group of boys and a dog. At first, I was too far away to see any details, and I wanted to keep it that way – since my dogs are not always the most approachable when it comes to meeting new dogs. I probably would have continued my normal day, had I not heard one of the boys call out to another boy who had just pulled up and ask him if he had any food in the car for the dog. Then I looked closer. And even from afar, I could tell the dog was way too thin. I yelled out to the boys that I would be back with food after my run.

I came back a few minutes later with a bowl full of food and lots of treats. But when I saw him, I could have cried right then. Not only, was this dog even more emancipated than I first realized, but he had a very large, deep wound on his rear end. And what’s worse – I could see the pit bull breed in him. Now, even though I have two large dogs, and I grew up with large dogs, I’m a little timid around strange large dogs. As I sat the bowl of food down, I quickly realized that was a mistake; he was eating way to fast and was going to make himself sick. I got brave. And before I could even think about what I was doing, I reached down and took the bowl of food away from a starving pit bull. And his only reaction was to look at me, wag his tail, and use his eyes to beg for me to give it back to him. I did – in handfuls at a time this time.
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