ArcaMax

Are they staring?

People are starting to notice -- my weight loss, that is.

Some people who know me are starting to say something. There are those other people who “think” they see something but they are afraid to say something. I really don’t know why. It’s not like those people who “think” maybe a woman is pregnant but are afraid to ask. I can totally understand that kind of hesitation. This, on the other hand is the opposite.

I don’t really care much either way. I see myself in the mirror and still say, (mostly) nasty things to my reflection. I don’t see that much of a change. When you have as much weight to lose as I do, it can take time to REALLY show. I can tell in my clothing and that makes me feel good. I am about 2 sizes smaller. Fortunately for my clothing budget I have plenty in my closet that is two sizes smaller. We all do it. We keep those clothes hoping we will fit into them again someday. I keep them too. I especially keep the expensive blazers. If I invested $400 in a blazer it’s not going to Goodwill anytime soon. They are a classic shape. I am close to being able to fit into a couple of those again. I will celebrate when that day comes!

Down over 35 pounds. And still losing. I guess that should feel good.

I bought a belt the other day. Those wide belts are back in fashion. I didn’t have one. And since I didn’t have a waist I didn’t feel a big rush to go buy one. Now that I’m more comfortable I bought one. This belt is 4 sizes smaller than my butt in pants. I like that! I have one of those classic hour-glass figures. I guess it’s coming back.

My husband and I were coming back from a walk this past weekend. He put his arm around my shoulder and announced how good it felt. He said something about how I fit in that crook in his arm again. I know he meant it as a compliment and was being romantic. I thanked him.

Silently I thought about how horrible it must have been when I didn’t fit in that crook. He never said anything. All I could think was, “Was it THAT BAD?”. Funny how your self-talk can swing from one side to the other. There’s that little “green man” that sits on one shoulder who says mean things. Everything he interprets is negative. Then there’s that little angel that sits on your other shoulder and says nice things. She’s the one who notices that little bit of progress you’ve made when you get on the scale and you are two-tenths of a pound lighter. It’s hard living with the two of them; yet we all do it. I guess it’s just a matter of how much we listen to the green man. I prefer to tell him to shut his trap.

The little angel tells me the diet is working. My scale does too. That’s two against one.

So here’s a diet recipe I dreamed up yesterday that I can share with you. This one made ME swoon. I’ve never been a huge crock pot fan. I might convert now.

French Crock Pot Rib Roast
Serves 4 to 6 (at least)

Ingredients:

1 (approx) 3 pound, boneless piece of rib roast (lean)

1 Tbl of dried herbs d’ Provence seasoning

1 large onion cut in half and then cut into half rings (thin slices)

8 oz of sliced mushrooms

2 -3 cups of organic beef broth

Grated sea salt

Directions:

Cut the rib roast into large chunks so you can get it to fit into the crock pot. I only cut mine into 3 pieces. This way I could slice it when finished. You can cut them into smaller hunks like stew if you want. It’s up to you. Pile those in the crock pot. Then sprinkle the whole thing with the herbs.

Place the onion ring halves inside. Sort of poke them down with the fork and go ahead and leave some sticking up. Put half of the mushrooms in. Poke those down too. Some on top is okay.

Then pour on the broth. I say 2 to 3 cups because you want enough broth in there but don’t come up more than two inches from the top because as the meat cooks it will produce more liquid and you don’t want it bubbling out of the top. With just 2 cups mine came really close to the top when cooked, but each pot is a bit different, so keep an eye out.

Then just grate on a bit of sea salt, put on the top and set the crock pot in motion. On high I cooked this 4.5 hours. Double that if you are going to do it on low. You can swing a bit one direction or the other on time. The meat won’t care. At the 4hour point I put in the rest of the mushrooms. This way they didn’t all totally disintegrate. Top back on til done. Don’t ever peek. The crock pot will know and each peek they say adds 15 minutes to your cooking time.

This made the most amazing dinner. Take out your meat and cut it. Mine had just a hint of red left in a few bits of the meat. You could cut it with a fork! Then ladle on the onions, broth and bits of mushroom.

I served this with green beans and a side salad and we had plenty. Feels just like you are eating in the French countryside. Big YUM.

Cheers
Enjoy,
Zola

Send email to Zola at dinnerwithzola@hotmail.com.