Tom’s decided to go with the semi-aggressive betting method and hit 3 of 10 races today. He made $100 on one and ended up with a $50 profit. Hopefully, he’ll make enough to at least cover the trip’s expenses that are on us. In a week or so, after he’s had enough time to test this method out, we may sell some stuff on eBay. It’ll depend on how well it does.

Since stopping the Claritin and starting eating I climbed up to 131 pounds, but this little “daily stuffer” diet I devised has dropped me down to 128 pounds. I’d really, really like to go on the cruise at around 120, if God will let me have any say over my own damn body. That way I could eat all I want and know I’m not likely to return over 130-135. If I left at 130, then hell, I’ll be setting records coming back at 140 or higher! The most I’ve ever weighed is 137, and I’d still prefer not to break that record till I’m old. It’s so uncomfortable and so much harder to get around when I’m over 125. I gave up a long time ago on getting thin and staying that way, but if I could find an easier way to lose a few pounds here and there when I get carried away, that’d be great. Having 3-4 small meals/snacks per day didn’t do me any good because this didn’t allow me to get full while still keeping the calories down. It was like a smoker trying to get by on just a drag here and a drag there. It doesn’t work. At least not for me. Without looking forward to filling up at least once a day, I go batty. So I decided to wait as long as I could when I got up each day, then stuff myself till I was full. Then I’d let myself have a small end-of-the-day saver like a piece of fruit, a cup of soup, popcorn, or yogurt, to keep me from waking up hungry. My big meal is usually around 800 calories. Hungry Man makes these 1-pound TV dinners that are pretty good. Especially the fish and chips. I sometimes have other things too, for variety. All in all, I end up with roughly 1000 calories a day. I may have to drop it to 800 if I ever get back down to 123. There are 105 days left before we set sail, so we’ll see where I’m at then, although wherever I am is where I am. This diet isn’t easy, but it’s not impossible. I’m a little hungrier today, however, now that my weight’s dropping. Tea does a good job of flushing water off and relieving my sore tits. I don’t know if the weight I’ve lost is water or fat, but it all takes up space just the same so it doesn’t matter.