Post-Thanksgiving recovery, Day 1

Breakfast: a meal of bitter herb and salt tears. Just kidding. But really, the night before I had Second Thanksgiving with the sister-in-law and her husband, and went nuts, capping off four days of going nuts. So I was glad to skip a meal. I drank water, and meditated repentantly.

Lunch: two fun-size bags of M&M's Milk Chocolate Candies: 150 calories.

Dinner: Snack upon arrival: crackers, cheese, and pepperoni. The meal itself: Thanksgiving leftover meal of ham, yams, mashed squash, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, gravy, and green bean casserole, in a take-out container so I know it totals 1 meal ... plus 1/3 of Jenna's same. Half a cream horn pastry for dessert. Let's say 2,000 calories all told. That's a lot. And not because I was achingly hungry; just because I was inattentive to how quickly the shoveling and munching was going. Sigh.

Friday.....

... and I'm back to paying attention to what I jam in my gob-hole, thanks to a nudge from a friend who's being supportive.

Breakfast: a Mary Jane peanut butter taffy, shared with the dog: 25 calories.

Lunch, a Bacon Clubhouse Burger from McDonald's: 740; large fries (ordered thoughtlessly, rather than impulsively):510; diet cola; a pumpkin pie: 240 calories (the second pie, offered for only a few cents more, I declined; for that, at least, I was mentally alert).

Total so far: 1515.

I ask myself at 1:27 in the afternoon: WILL I BE ABLE TO AVOID GOING OVER 2K for the day?

Let's see...

LATER: Okay, the night was a bust. J and I went on a date to Legal C Bar. We didn't eat extravagantly, but of course we blew past my daily limit.

(My decision not to record the particulars of this evening's dinner is short beer compared to my decision not to record Wednesday evening's dinner at Alden & Harlow with Ryne. Among the dishes we enjoyed: a "Pilgrimage" cocktail, duck heart spiedino, smoked beef tartare, fried brussels sprouts with a cheese sauce, diet Coke, roasted Japanese yams, a rum-based Beachcomber's Punch, pickled corn pancakes, pork belly, a chocolate bread pudding. THIS was an extravagant meal. It makes me want to get this diet business locked down, so that I can enjoy this kind of indulgence from time to time.)

Tuesday when I ate my lunch for breakfast

Lunch Breakfast: baloney and cheese sandwich on white bread with mayo, 300 calories. I drank water.

Snack: one Butterfinger cup, 115 calories. One execrable Hershey's Candy Corn Creme Bar: 67 calories.

Dinner: reheated Chinese food -- orange chicken (300 calories), beef with broccoli (120 calories), a little lo mein (210 calories), a little pork fried rice (300 calories), three crab rangoons (210 calories), a few spare ribs (180 calories). Diet Coke to drink.

Total for the day? 1802. And yet, I feel super gross. Hmm.

Back on the horse.....

... after a long break from thinking carefully about what I'm eating.

Breakfast: Chef Boyardee pasta, 190 calories. A bottle of diet Mountain Dew: zero calories, zero shame.

Snack: Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkin, 85 calories. A bottle of diet Mountain Dew: zero calories.

Dinner: Knorr Smokehouse Bacon Parmesan pasta side, split with J: 250 calories. A chicken breast sauteed in olive oil with thyme and lemon, which is, and I did not know this, about two servings of protein: 230 calories. With three slices of Gruyere cheese: add 250 calories. Green Giant Steamers Healthy Weight Vegetable Blend, split with J: 100 calories. Diet Pepsi to drink: zero calories.

Bonus dinner! Jenna came home with leftover Chinese food pilfered from her parents' fridge, and I'm not proud that I was very glad to tuck in. That means I have to add to my daily total: 1 egg roll, 157 calories. Two pieces of battered fried chicken, without the usual sweet-and-sour sauce: 300 calories (!). Half a cup of chicken lo mein: 140 calories. A teriyaki beef skewer: 210 calories. One fried shrimp: 40 calories.

Total for the day: 1952 calories. Holy hell, those calories pile up quickly! I thought I'd had a day of rather low consumption. This number check is a very sobering way to get back on the mindful eating wagon.