Time to get back on the wagon. Let's go. I'm back. 

 Hi, everyone.

Sorry I haven't been around much. I'm really trying to blog more consistently but that doesn't always happen.

WW is still going well. I really like the meetings, even though they're virtual. I feel so uplifted by them and the people in them. 

Today I took my friend Cecilia out for lunch to celebrate her birthday. We went to Blaze Pizza, because they make those cute little mini-pizzas, and I ate one (half at the restaurant, half later) and it was all delicious, but my stomach is unbelievably upset now. Also, the super-rich greasiness of it led me to binge on mandarin oranges later, which is the weirdest thing possible. I mean, I guess six or eight little cups of those things is not a binge per se, but it was more than I wanted to eat, and I haven't felt out of control around food in a long time. I think, the next time I go back, I will be getting a salad. I feel miserable physically and I also feel a bit sad because I know today I made a choice that doesn't support my goals. Still, Cecilia was happy, and I'm glad she's my friend, and I was glad to celebrate her. 

I'm proud of my progress overall, though, and I feel like I will make up for this in the next few days. It's just a blip. And it's something I've learned about myself: maybe say no to pizza next time. And for now, I'm practicing not beating myself up or becoming morose over something like this. And drinking lots and lots of water. 

Until next time,

Simone 

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Sunday, 23 March 2025
(The Third Sunday in Lent)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: Last Train to London by Meg Waite Clayton 
Weight: 300.2 lbs. (136 kg) 

 Hi, everyone!

Feast of St. Patrick fit check

There's something I've been meaning to talk to you about. 

In the last few days, I've pivoted from intermittent fasting to Weight Watchers (WW) as my primary means of weight loss. I made this decision a while back and started the transition on Friday of last week. 

I came to this decision for a number of reasons, but the main one was that, while I felt good doing IF, it's not a sustainable long-term solution. Five or ten years from now, I do not still want to be bound by that way of eating. To use the super cliche dichotomy everyone's heard, a diet and a lifestyle change are not the same thing. I feel that, at least for me, IF was more of a diet, while WW is more of a lifestyle-- one that is designed to adjust with you as you lose weight and even once you're in maintenance. 

I did really well on IF-- I lost about seventy pounds on it, felt really good, had some big wins, and it was a really great tool for that part of my journey. It served me well, but now it's time for the next stage of the journey. 

So far, I really like it. Tracking is much easier and less taxing in my executive function than I would have guessed. It almost feels like a game. I also really enjoy the meetings. Even though I live in the Valley of the Shadow of Meth without a car, and don't have access to much of anything in person, I've gone to a few of the virtual meetings, and I really enjoyed them. The coaches are nice, everyone seems supportive and helpful, and you learn good tips. 

Anyway, I don't want to make more out of this than it is-- just a pivot from one tool to another. I just wanted to let you all know. 

Today was a good day! Plenty of energy, higher-than-usual well-being, no more shark week, and I even decided to walk home from school! As much as I needed the break this past week, I was excited to be back on campus and see people. 

Still very convinced that beans on toast is the most elite breakfast. Change my mind. 

Until next time,

Simone

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Monday, 17 March 2025
(Monday in the Second Week of Lent)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Girl from the Grand Hotel by Camille Aubray 
Weight: 306.9 lbs. (139.2 kg) 

 Hi, everyone!

I've had another really good day today-- I even cooked! I mean, I kind of made it up as I went along, but still, I cooked! 

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Sunday, 16 March 2025
(The Second Sunday in Lent)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Girl from the Grand Hotel by Camille Aubray 
Weight: 308.0 lbs. (139.7 kg) 🦈

 Hi, everyone!

Today I had the best day, in terms of productivity and executive function but also just general well-being, that I've had in a while. I discovered a new safe food, and, my fellow Americans, we have been sleeping on the most elite breakfast: baked beans on toast. It's vegan (if you use plant butter on the toast and make sure to buy beans that aren't cooked with ham or bacon), it's pretty quick, it's easy, and it's full of protein! I had that, some canned pear slices, and a vanilla protein shake, and it was basically the perfect meal. So that is for sure going in the rotation. 

Spring break is coming to a close, and I got a lot less done around the house than I meant to, but I feel okay about that. You also may have noticed my weight-- very cool, but I'm not going to get too excited about it, since it was the day after a 24-hour fast and a lot of what I lost is probably water weight, and will probably be back tomorrow. But it's still cool to see numbers like that, and I know it's just a preview of what I'll achieve in the future! 

Until next time,

Simone

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Saturday, 15 March 2025
(Saturday in the First Week of Lent)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Girl from the Grand Hotel by Camille Aubray 
Weight: 308.8 lbs. (140 kg) 🦈

 Hi, everyone!

Well, thanks to the hormones, I've been in my feelings all day. I didn't get much done today, but I did take a shower (a very high-difficulty executive function task for me) so I'm proud of that. A full-day water-only fast during Shark Week is rough. But I did it! I have a feeling it's going to be an early night for me. I'm totally wiped. 

Until next time,

Simone

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Friday, 15 March 2025
(Friday in the First Week of Lent)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Girl from the Grand Hotel by Camille Aubray 
Weight: 312.2 lbs. (141.6 kg) 🦈

 Hi, everyone.

Not blogging for the past two days was sort of a conscious decision on my part. Tuesday was the birthday (and death anniversary) of someone very close to me, and I normally take that day each year to myself and don't worry about much except self-care. That ended up being two days this year, and I'm fine with that. I also didn't weigh myself either day, because on days when I'm one thing away from a full-on menty b, I don't want to give myself that one thing in the form of the scale. 

Also, (GENTLEMEN AVERT THINE EYES) my period came today-- EIGHT DAYS early!! What's up with that?? I mean, that would explain why my weight hasn't budged in a week and the uptick in desire to write slightly emo poetry, but seriously? Eight days? Ughhhhh...

In general, though, I am not super hungry, craving anything too badly, or feeling like I'm not eating enough. I am going to make an effort to get a little more fat (read: avocado toast with a big glug of olive oil) in my diet, because I don't think I'm getting enough. The protein shake situation continues to improve-- vanilla protein powder, oat milk, the oat milk creamer, and the chai spice blend is a good combination. I'm going to keep experimenting-- maybe with some different berries or fruit. If you have any suggestions, I'd love to know!

Tomorrow is a water fast, and I feel ready for it. I'm also hoping to do some housework and take a shower tomorrow. 

That's all I have for you today. 

Until next time,

Simone

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Thursday, 14 March 2025
(Thursday in the First Week of Lent)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: nothing right now (finished On Second Thought) 
Weight: 313.9 lbs. (142.5 kg) 🦈

 Hi, everyone!

I had an absolutely glorious day today, doing pretty much nothing. Yeah, I know, I'm going to have to get some homework and some housework done during this break. But today I gave myself permission to luxuriate-- it was well-deserved, I think. Tomorrow I'll actually do some stuff, including a shower, some housework, and some reading for school, especially for my sacramentology class. 

Oh, remember that midterm I was sure I had bombed? Yeah, about that. I just got the Canvas notification, and I got a 94%! Apparently, my professor was feeling charitable-- thank goodness!

Still not having a hard time figuring out what to eat, feeling deprived, or hungry. Obviously, I'm craving certain things, but that's to be expected. I'm pretty proud of myself. 

Until next time, 

Simone

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Monday, 10 March 2025
(Monday in the First Week of Lent)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: nothing right now (finished On Second Thought) 
Weight: 313.4 lbs. (142.5 kg) 

 Hi, everyone!

Forgot to weigh in this morning. Forgot to blog today. It's already way past my bedtime so I'll catch you tomorrow.

Until next time, 

Simone 

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Sunday, 9 March 2025
(First Sunday in Lent)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: On Second Thought by Kristan Higgins
Weight: unknown 

 Hi, everyone!

Well, the taste-testing operation was, on the whole, a pretty significant failure. 

The kettle corn was really good, but that was about it. All of the dairy substitute products (including the yogurt I thought I liked when I tried it before) have bad textures (namely, way too hard/dense) and a violently offensive aftertaste that can only be described as "stale coconut farts." The Hippeas had kind of a funky aftertaste, although not nearly as bad as the Babybel rounds or the "cream cheese." 

To reward myself for surviving such indignities, I decided to invoke my right to order in once per week today, and I ordered in from the only vegan place in town. I got a grilled buffalo chickpea flatbread with vegan mozzarella (that did NOT taste like tropical toots,) roasted corn, little bits of tomato, chickpeas, pickled onions, and green onion. Y'all, look how gorgeous this thing was: 

Until next time,

Simone

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Saturday, 8 March 2025
(Saturday after Ash Wednesday)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: On Second Thought by Kristan Higgins
Weight: unknown 

 Hi everyone! 

It's a Friday in Lent, so just water today. It's also officially spring break! Apparently, I need the break, because I got home around noon today and took an unplanned nap from 2 PM to almost 9 PM. Probably not the best thing for my circadian rhythm, but I'm not mad about it. 

I also ordered some groceries today, including some plant-based things I've never tried before that I'll be trying. Tomorrow’s plant-based taste test will include: 

• My usual KOS vegan chocolate protein shake but with vanilla coconut yogurt instead of the soy yogurt, in hopes that will help with the aftertaste
• Nacho Vibes Hippeas (I’ve heard a lot of vegan kids really like them, so that’s promising.) 
• Vegan Babybel rounds
• Boomchickapop Sweet and Salty Kettle Corn Popcorn 
• Triscuit Whole Grain Vegan Crackers (I thought Triscuits were vegan by definition, but the more you know…)
• Philadelphia Plant-Based Cream Cheese (I have high hopes for this one. I've heard universally good things.) 

Hopefully at least some of them will be winners so I can keep shopping at Kroger/Aldi/Giant Eagle and not have to surrender my entire net worth to Thrive Market for a membership and their overpriced bougie food. 

I also bought, but have not yet received, the vanilla version of my current protein powder, because I want to see if that's any better. When I get the vanilla stuff, I have an idea of trying it with coconut yogurt and some vanilla non-dairy creamer and maybe some chai spices? That might be good. Enough cinnamon and clove will cover a multitude of evils in the taste department.

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Friday, 6 March 2025
(Friday after Ash Wednesday)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: On Second Thought by Kristan Higgins
Weight: 314.0 lbs. (142.0 kg)  

 Hi, everyone!

So, today was my first full plant-based day. Here's what I ate: 

• A burrito from the student union at school (rice, black and pinto beans, guacamole, roasted corn, some kind of chipotle spice blend) and it was delicious
• The chips that came with the burrito (just classic Lay's-- definitely vegan; I double-checked)
• Cinnamon applesauce
• A few Saltines

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Thursday, 6 March 2025
(Thursday after Ash Wednesday)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: On Second Thought by Kristan Higgins
Weight: 312.9 lbs. (141.9 kg)  

Hi, everyone! Just got out of the shower and I'm headed to bed pretty soon here. 

So today was Ash Wednesday, which was a full water fast for me, and Lent has officially begun. 

Yesterday, Shrove Tuesday, I intentionally ate as much dairy as I possibly could, but that backfired on me, because I ended up throwing up from overeating. (Although, bright side: I felt sick to my stomach for a lot of the day today, which made the fast much easier. Can't get tempted by food when you're disgusted by food!) 

Tomorrow is my first day of eating vegan. I think I'll probably get a burrito bowl at school (rice, beans, guacamole, corn, maybe some salsa, just no cheese or sour cream) after class and Adoration, just to make things easier. It's like $5, which isn't bad, and it's filling. Then when I get home, I'll probably have a protein shake or something. Maybe some pasta and red sauce. I don't know. 

For now, it's well past my bedtime, and I need to sleep.

Until next time, 

Simone

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Wednesday, 5 March 2025
(Ash Wednesday)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: On Second Thought by Kristan Higgins
Weight: 316.0 lbs. (143.3 kg)  

 Hi, everyone!

I know it's been a minute-- I'm sorry. Things got wild with midterms being last week, plus I think I might have gotten some kind of food poisoning or some other GI nonsense in the middle of the week. I'm fine now, but that was a rough couple of days. 

As far as how I did on that one oral midterm I was worried about-- well, let's put it this way: as the person who took the exam before me left the room, the professor told him he did amazing and had nothing to worry about. As I left after my exam, she said, and I quote, "You were really fun to talk to!" 😬 Yeeeeeahh. So that was a thing.

I've water fasted all day today (not for any particular reason; just because I wanted to) and I feel pretty good. I really like the clarity that fasting gives me-- it makes my brain feel so...unfoggy. I have epilepsy and a brain injury (which is what caused the epilepsy,) and I deal with a lot of neurological crap, and I've noticed that intermittent fasting helps. (Not to mention, it's clearly great for weight loss, too.)

Ash Wednesday is this week! Obviously, I'm making a lot of spiritual preparations for Lent, but I'm also doing some practical things to get ready for the dietary shift. For example, I've already bought all the ingredients for my vegan protein shake (KOS protein powder, oat milk, soy yogurt, bananas) and started getting used to making and drinking it instead of the Fairlife Core ones (which contain dairy) that I was drinking before. Here's what else I need to do: 

• Total fridge clean-out (partly to get rid of dairy/make room for new stuff and partly because I haven't cleaned my fridge in a while and miiiiiiight have some science projects starting in there.)
• Buy and try out a bunch of vegan products that Kroger carries (I will for sure keep you updated on this.) 
• Use up the last little bit of parmesan cheese I still have. 
• Restock pantry staples like applesauce, canned tomatoes, legumes, corn, soy-flavored ramen noodles, and plant-based canned soups.

Sunday, 2 March 2025
(Quinquagesima Sunday)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: On Second Thought by Kristan Higgins
Weight: 316.0 lbs. (143.3 kg) 

 Hi, everyone! 

Look at me, remembering to blog two days in a row! (Did I remember to weigh in this morning? Shhh, we don't talk about that.) 

The sharks have officially departed, and I am feeling much better. 

Today we had to sign up for our oral exam time slot for that Church History midterm I was telling you about. I signed up for 1:20 PM on Friday, and it's a twenty-minute exam. (If you are the praying type, I would much appreciate it.) So, I'll go to Mass at noon on campus, hike back up to the theology/philosophy building, take my exam, and then catch the 2:45 bus home. (I need to make sure I know where my bus pass is-- note to self.) Or I could just walk home, if the weather's not too bad. 

I also posted a quick note earlier today about what I'm doing for Lent (at least the fasting aspect) this year. Check that out if you haven't yet. 

Not much else to say. It's going to be an interesting week with that midterm coming up, but hopefully it will go well. Otherwise, I'm feeling good and on track. It feels good to be working toward my goals, and I like that I get to share it with you guys as well. 

Until next time,

Simone

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Monday, 24 February 2025
(Monday after Sexagesima)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Inmate by Freida McFadden
Weight: unknown (forgot to weigh in) 

 Hi, everyone! 

Greetings to you on the objectively most hilarious-sounding day of the liturgical year. 

Forgot to check in the last few days. Oops. Still here, still on track, moving forward. Hopefully Shark Week will end by tomorrow, too. 

At some point (not today because I'm studying for my Church History midterm, which might actually kill me) we need to talk about Lent, because several of my penances are going to involve food, which means I will be eating in a way that would not be sustainable or healthy in the long term, and also that these modifications will not have anything to do with dieting or weight loss, but rather, the mortification of the flesh for the purpose of spiritual growth and intimacy with God. I basically have what I'm doing planned out, and I'll tell you about that soon. 

(Fun fact: Easter is a moveable feast, meaning it doesn't fall on the same calendar day each year-- unlike, for example, Christmas, Epiphany, and Michaelmas, which always fall on 25 December, 6 January, and 29 September respectively. The date changes year to year. The earliest Ash Wednesday can fall is 4 February and the latest is 10 March, meaning that the earliest Easter can fall is 22 March and the latest is 25 April. Cool, right? This year in the West, Ash Wednesday will fall on 5 March and Easter will fall on 20 April, so a very late season this year. Stay tuned for "Weird Facts Simone Has Memorized for Some Demented Reason") 

Well, I need to get back to studying (blegh) so I'll talk to you tomorrow. 

Until next time,

Simone 

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Sunday, 23 February 2025
(Sexagesima Sunday)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Inmate by Freida McFadden
Weight: 318.8 lbs. (143.5 kg) 🦈

 Hi, everyone. 

Another day without much to say, but I'm checking in anyway. 

Shark week is upon us, so I'm definitely expecting some fluctuations in my weight. 

It's once again way past my bedtime, so I'm going to call it for tonight.

Until next time, 

Simone

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Wednesday, 19 February 2025
(Wednesday after Septuagesima)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Inmate by Freida McFadden
Weight: 316.5 lbs. (143.5 kg) 🦈

 Hi, everyone! 

It's already 10 PM, so today is going to be more of a check-in than a post. I don't have much to say-- today was pretty uneventful-- but it wasn't a bad day. I'm just tired. I'm also pretty emotional-- Clue App says Shark Week is imminent-- and I just want to get to bed. I'll have more to say tomorrow. 

Until next time,

Simone. 

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Tuesday, 18 February 2025
(Tuesday after Septuagesima)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Inmate by Freida McFadden
Weight: 317.1 lbs. (143.8 kg)

First of all, an apology: I forgot to weigh in AND blog yesterday and Saturday. Whoops.

In my defense, I was having some neurological issues. I woke up around noon and don’t remember most of the day on Saturday. I remember waking up, watching a few hours of My 600 Lb. Life (a show I’ve recently gotten into– I know; I’m late to the party), ordering Chipotle, drinking a few protein shakes, and everything else is kind of a blur. I probably went to bed pretty early. 

Yesterday I went to Mass-- and I knew it was going to be a fabulous day when the processional hymn was "To Jesus Christ Our Sovereign King," an absolute banger and easily top 3 if not top 2 hymns for me-- and got home around 2 PM, and... slept. A bunch. 

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Monday, 17 February 2025
(Monday after Septuagesima)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: The Inmate by Freida McFadden
Weight: 317.9 lbs. (144.2 kg)

 Hi, everyone!

Thanks for hanging in there with me yesterday-- it was a tough one. I'm feeling much better today. There’s no need to sugarcoat it: I had a bad day, I was discouraged, and I let it get to me. But here’s the thing—bad days don’t have to turn into bad weeks. I woke up today, stepped on the scale, and was reminded that one slip doesn’t erase all my progress. 

So what helped me reset? First, stepping back and remembering the science—you don’t gain real weight from one day of overeating, and my night-time weigh-in was meaningless. That simple fact kept me from spiraling. I also focused on taking care of myself instead of punishing myself. I took a shower, curled up in my blankets, drank my water, and reminded myself that today is a new day. And now, here I am, moving forward.

(Also, never weigh yourself at night. Night weigh-ins are fake news. That's not fat-- it's water, food, poop, and lies. Weigh yourself in the morning and then stay away from that scale until tomorrow!)

I didn’t gain six pounds overnight. I didn’t undo months of work in one moment of frustration. My body is still changing. I am still changing. And I am still in this. 

Also, I was so busy having a pity party yesterday that I forgot to mention—did you notice the new look? It took me-- no joke-- weeks to find a theme that actually works for this blog. I started searching at least two, if not three, weeks before even writing my first post. The problem? Almost everything out there is optimized for photography-heavy, magazine-style layouts rather than text. I wanted something clean, simple, and designed for actual writing—which was much harder to find than it should have been. So, when I finally stumbled upon this one, I was so excited! I think it’s such an improvement over the old look. What do you guys think?

Tonight, I went to a Galentine's Day party with a bunch of other single female grad students (most of whom I met for the first time), and we had pizza and treats (I brought chips and artichoke dip) and watched Jane Eyre. I ate more than I intended to, but it's not a big deal-- one meal or one day doesn't define the journey; showing up consistently does. It was a fun night, and it was good to make friends, which is something I have really struggled with in the year I've lived here. I really want to make more of an effort socially, even though that's hard for me. 

I also DNFed the book I was reading-- something I rarely do. The book in question (Long Island by Colm Tóibín) was the sequel to Brooklyn, a book I read over Christmas break. Brooklyn became one of my top ten, maybe even top five historical fiction books of all time. The sequel was nothing like that, though-- the main story arc made no sense based on how the characters were established in Brooklyn and the writing (which was gorgeous in the first book) felt like a chore to read, and so I ended up DNFing about a third of the way through because it was such a slog. (For those of you not familiar with Goodreads slang, "DNF" means "Did Not Finish.") So hopefully this weekend I can scroll through my Goodreads "Want to Read" shelf and find something good to start. 

I guess that's about it for tonight. I stayed out later than I thought I would (these younger grad students do not understand the #grannylife) so I'm going to bed fairly imminently. 

Until next time, 

Simone

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Friday, 14 February 2025
(The Feast of St. Cyril and St. Methodius)

Location: Ohio (home)

Reading: Nothing right now (DNFed Long Island)

Weight: 319.9 lbs. (145.1 kg)

 Hi, everyone. 

Today has been tough. 

I'm dealing with a lot of discouragement right now related to my journey. Even after a 70-pound loss and all the hard work that has gone into that, I barely look different (if at all), I am only down about a clothing size and a half, and I don't feel much different, which can be demoralizing. I know that in reality what that means is that I've been losing visceral fat-- that's the stuff that wraps around your organs, plays havoc with every system in your body, and eventually kills you-- and that's a really good thing. But it's also devastating to see the same fat face in the mirror day after day with no visible sign of improvement, to have nobody notice that your body is changing (or even a vague, "huh, you look nice lately, even if I can't put my finger on why"), to not feel like anything except the number on the scale is changing-- and even that is changing not nearly fast enough. 

And so, as a result of this-- combined with the stupid decision to go to the student center the day before Valentine's Day, a holiday I already hate (#TeamCyrilAndMethodius), and not consider the fact that every household, club, and student organization on campus was going to be down there selling cake pops, chocolate strawberries, candy, and other treats-- I ate an hour before my window and I ate several things I'm not proud of, in quantities I'm not proud of. I let the discouragement (and the holiday nonsense) get to me, and tomorrow I'll likely be paying the price by doing the walk of shame back to the 320s. 

So, yeah. It's been a bad day. I don’t know what to say today. I don’t have a neat conclusion. I don’t have a lesson to take from this. I just feel like curling up in a ball and pretending I don’t exist. But instead of doing that, I’m writing this. Because not writing today would just give me an excuse to not write on every other bad day, too, and eventually I would quit blogging altogether. And I am not going to quit. So today, I'm still writing. Thanks for still reading. 

Until next time,

Simone

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Thursday, 13 February 2025
(Thursday in the Fifth Week of Ordinary Time)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: nothing right now (DNFed Long Island)
Weight: 319.7 lbs. (145 kg)

 Today my father would have been 73 years old. (May his soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.) My mother is currently the age he was when he died: 69. At just 33 years old myself, I feel far too young to have one parent dead and the other in memory care. And, to be honest, it’s a pretty big kick in the pants about my own mortality. 

True, I’m adopted, so I don’t have their genes. And my struggles are different from theirs. Neither of my parents ever struggled with their weight, and I obviously do– that’s how I got in the situation I’m presently in. Likewise, I am not an alcoholic, which is what largely caused both of their current situations. But whether it’s smoking and drinking yourself to death or dying from complications related to obesity, an early, preventable death is a tragic thing. I don’t want to end up like my parents. 

People in the weight loss/general self-help world often talk about how, to stick to your goals, you have to "remember your why." And I’ll be honest: day to day, I’m very motivated by things like wanting to look great in a swimsuit, turning heads with a dramatic weight loss, and getting compliments on how much my body has changed. But days like today remind me that I’m really doing this for a much bigger purpose: I’m doing it to save my life. They don’t call it morbid obesity for nothing. If I don’t lose this weight, I could end up dying even younger than my dad did, or be permanently, preventably disabled by my weight the way my mom is by years of drinking. 

I don’t want that. I want to be in the best possible position to face menopause, middle age, and beyond with strength and grace. I want to live seventy, seventy-five, or maybe even eighty years if God chooses to give me that many. And when the inevitable bell tolls for me, I want to be living my absolute best old-lady life– not miserable, in pain, and regretting the fact that I didn’t lose weight or get healthy or change my life sooner. I see my future self as retired, going on cruises, seeing the world, having even less of a filter than I do now, maybe playing pickleball or going to aerobics classes or power walking around the retirement community with my old-lady besties, and genuinely enjoying my final chapters. That’s what I’m going for. If I have kids one day, I want to be there for them-- because losing a parent at 30 is not something I would wish on anyone, especially not my hypothetical kids-- and even if I never have children, I want to be there for me. 

And on days when imagining myself in a swimsuit at my goal weight isn’t enough to keep me from eating a whole pizza or scarfing down a pint of Haagen-Dazs, I hope imagining myself as a happy, healthy octogenarian will be enough. (Not to mention, I also plan to be a complete menace.) 

Today is also an important day because of the scale. For the first time since probably 2019 or 2020, I am in the 310s! And weighing in at 318 is especially significant because my starting weight was 388, so I am now officially 70 whole pounds down. I probably could have been there sooner, but I sort of fell off the wagon in December and January and have been fighting to lose that weight, but I’ve done it, and I am now under 320. I could not be prouder of myself, and I’m excited to keep making progress. I can’t even imagine what being in the 200s again will feel like, and at this rate, it’s probably only a few months off. 

Not much else to report. The furnace is continuing to behave itself, which is good. I am having an easier and easier time making it to 3 PM every day without eating, because I am getting back into the fasting routine (after the aforementioned six weeks or so off the wagon), and it really does get easier with time fairly quickly. Consuming plenty of protein helps a lot, as does staying busy– or, if all else fails, taking a nap to make your fasting window go by faster. Are any of you intermittent fasters, too? If so, what’s your secret for pushing through your fast to get to that window? 

I hope you’re all having a good day, and that you’re crushing your goals, too.

Until next time,

Simone 

What a weird day. 

[Editor's note: So weird, apparently, that I wrote this whole post and forgot to actually post it yesterday! Oops! This was written Tuesday evening, but I am publishing it on Wednesday morning.] 

This semester, Tuesday and Thursday are usually my longer school days, with one class from 11-12:30 and the other from 12:30-2, and then I catch the city bus on campus around 3 to get me about 2/3 of the way home and then walk the last few blocks. That extra hour on campus waiting for the bus is handy for reading, schoolwork, or taking a little walk, and then by the time I get home, my 3-7 eating window has started, so I can go ahead and have something to eat. It's not a bad setup. 

But that is not what happened yesterday. I had a home repair issue that I had called about getting looked at, and we all understood (I thought) that they would come by around 4 PM or so. Well, inexplicably and without warning, they showed up just before 10:30 AM. So instead of going to school yesterday, I was stuck at home dealing with this. Luckily, when I emailed my professors, they were both very nice about it, being well-acquainted themselves with home repair issues, and both wished me well in the endeavor. It is now (allegedly) fixed, and I am happy to report that there are no longer any sounds coming from my basement which resemble the horde of Genghis Khan riding over a tin roof. 

Tomorrow will be what would have been my dad's seventy-third birthday, which I'm sure I will be feeling some kind of way about. In some ways it feels like he died a decade or more ago, but then sometimes I am amazed that the real number is three-and-a-half years because it feels like it's only been a year. Death and grief are odd things, as I am learning as time goes by. 

On a more cheerful note, I am still drinking (and liking) the chocolate protein shakes, although I just had one today since drinking two yesterday seemed to mess with my digestion. (Nothing a dose of Pepto couldn't fix, but still.) Still, 26 grams of protein in a little bottle with only 4g of sugar is excellent, and I'm grateful to have discovered it. Do any of you have a go-to protein shake or drink that you swear by? I'd love to know. 

Tuesday, 11 February 2025
(Tuesday in the Fifth Week of Ordinary Time)
Location: Ohio (home)
Reading: Long Island by Colm Tóibín
Weight: 320.0 lbs. (145.1 kg)