Happy May Day!! Let's keep track of all the important issues of our lives... which of course includes eating. Welcome vets.

__________________
Judy
highest = 180, goal = 138-140
Oh, to be back at goal.....

To continue the conversation from the April thread.....

Teel, you are semi correct about what you read regarding a double pension in Texas. Actually that was the idea that they wanted everyone to believe. We cannot get a double pension. In fact, we can not even collect Social Security without a benefit deduction when have enough quarters of our own work. The provision that you referred to has been eliminated. It provided a way for teachers to be able to collect survivor benefits on a spouse's SS without having our own benefits reduced. So, if you are following this..... we get Teacher retirement, can't collect SS without a reduction in out TRS retirement and can't get survivor benefits without a reduction in TRS benefits. As some prople say, the best thing about teaching is June, July, and August. This year both my children went to work for very very large corporations. It is amazing the difference in benefits between the private sector and the public. Teaching was personally a good thing while I had children at home. You can't beat the fact that your hours and theirs are essentially the same. But fiscally, it is awful. By the time my kids were grown, I couldn't afford to get out of it. I have been at the top of the pay scale for at least six years, and the state has not given a raise in that time. New teachers have an increase every year --- those of us that are topped out just get worse off relative to "real" money. Raises will be given to the bottom of the scale to entice new teachers to the profession. At the top --- we will be screwed again. So, what's my plan..... If we do get a raise, I'll probably stay 3 more years. Each year adds 2% to your retirement check. At the end of that time I will recieve around 70% of my regular pay. And why three more years??? Because retirement checks are based on the best three year average. And, that three year average is why I have been teaching summer school for the last four years. I am elgible now, and I want the option to go at any time.

Here ends your reality lesson in the personal financial aspects of public education. I now return you to a nice Sunday and beautiful spring day.

__________________
Judy
highest = 180, goal = 138-140
Oh, to be back at goal.....

It sounds painful, but the private sector has it's problems with retirement benefits, too.

I worked for an engineering firm for 18 years that had a very well funded pension plan. However, the company was acquired by a huge construction firm (Raymond Constructors - ever heard of them?). They found a whole series of obscure loopholes that allowed them to suck up those assets and most other company assets - ultimately into their own pockets. We worker bees were left with miniscule annuitites for a couple pennies on the dollar.

After that, most of those legal loopholes were closed to prevent other companies from raiding employee pension funds. However, that company still managed to renege on health benefits for retired employees (employes who retired before the mid 1990s got full medical benefits; but a few more loopholes were found a few years ago).

I got screwed out of my DHL pension plan, too, after it was acquired by the German postal service.

I feel pretty bitter about it. But at least I was making a pretty decent salary during those years.

I've always felt that teachers and nurses get a pretty raw deal in the salary department. Wages are incredibly low in relation to the education required and great responsibilites assumed.

Anyway, I do hope you get a raise so that the next 3 years will add a sizeable chunk to your retirement income.

Well, I need to go make some almond meal cupcakes - the realtor is coming over at 10 am, and I want to have some snacks ready.

__________________
~~~Teelbee
Back to GOAL!!!
start weight: 176/goal range: 137-134/now: 138
Reached goal in Aug. 2003 - 4rd year of maintenance.

Welcome to May! I'm not sure there are any totally safe places to work any more for the long term employee, public or private sector. Most working people are playing the slot machine--some will luck out, and many won't.

TB, sounds like you are ready! I'd be tempted to leave the fence for the sake of the implied privacy and the flowers. It could be negotiated if you get a nice offer. Good for you for thinking of the kitties. I hope the condo works out well for them.

DH is going to work on the remaining two closet floors this afternoon. Are you as tired of reading about the eternal floor project as I am of writing about it? Meanwhile I must have spend three hours yesterday just putting loose beads and findings back in their appointed places in my studio/office. I think I had every work surface covered.

I was going to visit a couple of garden centers, however, it's so gray and blustery I've lost my enthusiasm. Well, I do have plenty of things to do around here anyway....

__________________
BC
LC Since 1998
Highest Weight 172
Current 104-108

Gray and rainy here today, Brenda. But our Confirmation went off without a hitch. I don't know about you guys but there were sure a lot of people coughing in church today. That bug just won't go away!

Well, I'm off to another meeting. I'll get home in time for dinner.

Judy: What are you going to do in your retirement. I think you should use your gifts at sewing and decorating and offer to decorate people's homes ~ or how about become a "stager," ala TB's house? I'm pretty good at figuring these things out for others. Just let me know if any of you need help.

But, will you figure it out for me???

Bkfst today was clean. So far today all I've had to eat is that. I need to stop somewhere and get lunch before I go to my other meeting.

How're ya doin' Donna?
I wonder what happened to Lauri?
I'm so envious of the other thread, Barb! I'll be able to join you some day.
Keep posting here too, okay?

See y'all later.
Peace, Peg

Judy: How nice of you to "look up" my DH. I think he's pretty good looking too! Thanks for doing that. In case anyone else wants to look it's www.tabcom.org.
Peg

Thanks for the link, Peg. Your DH is a handsome guy Oh yes, I'll just bet he "can" work a room!

Well, I think I'm already doing my retirement. Although when DH retires, I may have to go back to work just to get out of the house, LOL! Well, not so LOL, either, ya know?

The closets are done! Now, if DH can only get all his boxes from the livingroom back into his room, I'll have a semblance of a home again.

__________________
BC
LC Since 1998
Highest Weight 172
Current 104-108

I'm aiming for 2008. That will be my 41st year at Hallmark, but I'll only be 62 that year, so it's the earliest I'd care to consider collecting SS. In fact, I might not collect SS that soon, if income looks adequate otherwise. The self-directed investments in my company 401K are looking dismal this year, but I trust the profit-sharing will hold up. Y'all can help with that.

The Hallmark Hall of Fame production of "Riding the Bus With My Sister" is tonight. Rosie O'Donnell plays the mentally retarded sister of Andy McDowell in a true story. Should be quite interesting.

I'm not much of a packrat, but the prospect of cleaning up for a move is seriously discouraging. Won't happen at my house anytime soon!

Peg, nice smile on the DH. I can hardly imagine a two-pastor couple. Too much stress!! Hope you'll find peace of heart in the next weeks and months as you go through this latest transition.

See you here!

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal

So much to do, so little time!

Peg, your DH IS a handsome guy. He does sorta look like mine:
http://www.glassscapes.com/about_glass_scapes.htm

Barb, we are the same age. Isn't early retirement for us now 63? For me, I am going to start collecting the minute I turn 63! Of course, that doesn't mean I will actually retire. I will probably still "do windows" until I die, LOL.

My cousin is a teacher in a Chicago suburb called Dalton. She is finally retiring this year, but it was a big decision. She did summer schools, too, Judy. She also mentioned she has almost a year of sick/personal days saved up that the school system is going to treat those days as if she had worked that extra year. I, too agree that teachers AND nurses get the bad end of the wage stick.

Teel, when I sold my house I just put my cat in the basement with a big note on the basement door "Be Careful of Cat!" or something to that effect. But a kitty condo sounds wonderful! Hope they appreciate it! And I would leave the fence, too. Gosh, it sounds like your house is in move-in condition. If all the major stuff is OK (roof, AC, plumbing, etc.) I think most people will expect to have a few projects to do to change a house to their taste. And as they say: "There's no accounting for taste!" When we bought our townhome, the finished part of the basement had a red, white & blue diamond pattern carpet! The phone guy said it made him dizzy. Luckily, the next year our sump pump failed and flooded the basement over Labor Day weekend. Got a new carpet! And a few months prior to that we had a monster of a hail storm which totally wrecked our already-bad roof. Before the storm, we were getting quotes from roofing companies. Storm hit, called insurance guy and got a new roof! Ah, Peg, sometimes God works in mysterious ways!

Donna, how are the legs doing?
Ilse, more progress?
I finally had a clean day yesterday with NO bars or Aunt Ruth's Pecan Cake. Down 1.5. Just shows ta go ya that Atkins knows whereof he speaks.

Happy May!

__________________
Alida
5'1" ~ 59 years old
Highest weight: 165
Atkins 7/10/2004
160/126/125
RE-DO, January 2008:
167/162/135

Yes, Alida, early retirement according to the gov't may well be 63. But as happy as I am in my everyday work life, enough is enough. I want to be outta here before people start saying, "Wow. Are YOU still here???" I still have energy for a second career, whatever that may be.

If Rosie O'Donnell's performance in "Riding the bus..." seemed over-the-top, it was exactly as I'd have expected from the book. The movie story, while plodding, was fairly accurate (with some changes for the sake of the medium)--except that everything was "nicer" than the true story. Both the book and the movie are courageous accounts of complicated lives being worked out.

Today I am wearing the pants I dreamed of fitting into. The pleats hang straight, the pockets don't gap, and I have to cinch in the waist a little. Nevertheless, I cling to that "I'm too fat" feeling in order to promote awareness. As Judy's quote says, this is the really hard part.

Be well everyone!

__________________
Barb L.
Atkins since Jan 2003
Maintenance as of 4/05


My Fitday Journal

Wow, Alida!! Our DH's do look alike! What a great pic of you too!

Barb: Both of us being ministers is actually very comforting. We know what the other is going through. We learned long ago not to offer too much advice and to just comfort. We have rich and deep theological discussions. We are both on the same page that way. But, because we are in different denominations, we don't get in each other's way at all. Some day I will tell you all our story.

Re: retirement. I'm going to start collecting SS this year. I turn 62 in Nov. and that is the age I can start collecting. Our financial advisor did the math and showed me how if I start collecting early it may pay a lower premium, but I will get it longer. Playing the averages (which seems macabre, I know) I may not live long enough to collect it all anyway! Why not start collecting when I am young enough to enjoy it? Also, I have two pension funds. Many ministers are not paid well, but my DH and I have been fortunate in these last few years. We have both worked at big churches who appreciate their pastors, and understand that we need a living wage. Also, our denominations have excellent pension funds. Because I changed denominations mid-career, I have two funds. I am going to annuitize one of them this year. That will give me a little income when I have no job after September. DH has already annuitized his pension and SS.

Judy: You, too, are young enough for another career! Get out of there as soon as you can and do something that fires up your belly! I was at a meeting yesterday where there were young ministers (male and female) doing their stuff and it was truly heartwarming to see their enthusiasm and ENERGY! Gave me a lot of hope. And it reminded me of how it feels when what you are doing is "in your bones."

By the way, I don't think that "in your bones" thing is tied to age. I expect that it can come at any age. I thoroughly expect to have it again sometime in the future. Sometimes now I get it. But, to tell the truth, I am ready to be done with this church. Not for no reason am I an Interim minister. I really like the "short term" nature of the job. I will have been there two years when I finish in Sept. That's enough!

Confession time: I am thoroughly disgusted with myself (for Brenda: and feeling sorry for me too) for the way that I have been eating the last two weeks! I have been into the sweets big time. My weight is up 6 pounds. It feels like 20!! Of course there are psychological reasons, but it is also a matter of choice. Evidently the switch is "OFF." I know I sound like I am whining (sorry!), but I just can't seem to get back to that clean eating! Next week we leave for CA and I wanted to be so "buff." Dang!! I'm going to try induction this week and see if I can at least get back to the "set" point that I had reached in February. Wish me luck! (Fibromyalgia rearing its ugly head. Muscles aches all over and sciatica back. But, I'm not paying attention.)

I loved "Riding the Bus With My Sister." I thought Rosie's interpretation was "spot on" I also loved Andie McDowell. Just loved it all. Very entertaining. We weren't going to stay up for it because we were both so exhausted last night, but we couldn't stop. DH teared up at ALL the commercials, especially the one with the little boy and his Mom who found the card in his backpack from his teacher. (He misses his "boys" both in their 40's now, but on the West Coast) We will see one of his "boys" when we go out there.

Let's all have a good week. TB: Your house sounds absolutely darling! I wouldn't do anything with that fence. What is a "kitty condo?"

Peace, Peg

Barb - perfectly fitting pants! Nothing feels better than that - especially when you sit down and they ~still~ fit perfectly! Barb, I wanted to watch Riding the Bus last night, but I forgot! I like both Andie McDowell and Rosie O'Donnell a lot.

Alida, don't I wish I had a basement! That's one of the things I've always loved about houses in the midwest and east: basements and attics! Both of those features are uncommon throughout California. Especially around here, which used to have an extremely high water table. It used to be true that you couldn't dig a fence post hole without it filling with water, so building basements was very problematic. In the last 70 to 80 years, overpopulation pretty much drained the underground acquifers, but basements still aren't common. It sounds like you have some good karma going when it comes to major house repairs being covered by insurance. Imagine a hail storm bad enough to ruin a roof!

Peg, a kitty condo is basically just a tall, oversize cage with differtent levels and perches built in. The one we got is on rollers, so it is pretty easy to move. One kitty likes it a lot and sleeps in it, another will go in for food, but the third doesn't want anything to do with it! They get to try it in earnest today as I decided I will put them in the workshop while the window and floor cleaners are here today.

Peg, it sounds like you've been out and about and on the go for weeks! Now that confirmation is behind you, maybe things will even out a bit. I know it seems to be more challenging to stay LC when you're away from home so much. Would it help you get ready for CA if you go shopping for lots of packable (brown bag) foods? There aren't a lot of things I ~really~ like to eat that are completely packable, but I love stuffed celery and hb eggs!

BC, the floors are finally finished!!! Yeah!!! You both deserve a great big round of applause for finishing that huge project - what a great accomplishment! I'm sure they are gorgeous and I hope to see a picture or two. I think hardwood floors are so much lovelier than than wall-to-wall carpeting! I hope I can find a place with good floors.

I took it a bit easy yesterday, and my diet sufferred for it. Because of expending so much energy the last few weeks, I've been able to "get away with" eating some high carb foods; and yet, lose a few pounds. Hmmm... when my activity level dropped, the cravings came roaring in. I really went overboard with some LC meringues and LC chocolate; as well as just eating too much of some higher calorie LC foods. Though my weight is only up a pound (135), I feel a bit sluggish and bloated.

Part of it was just being overtired, I think. I've been sleeping only about 6 hours a night. So, today I plan to be much more vigilant about the diet and I'm going to try to get to bed earlier. I've read more than once that sleep deprivation is not conducive to weight loss. I don't know of specific studies, but I guess that is true for me.

The realtor tried to take pictures of the house yesterday, but her camera only used a floppy disk for storage! It was full and I didn't have any clean diskettes around (who uses floppy disks these days!). So, I spent much of the afternoon trying to get some good pictures with my camera. The garden is just bursting with color now, but the shade trees tend to hide the house and put a lot of shadows on the walls. Picturesque, but not the best for real estate ads. If I get a chance, I'll upload some of the pics later.

__________________
~~~Teelbee
Back to GOAL!!!
start weight: 176/goal range: 137-134/now: 138
Reached goal in Aug. 2003 - 4rd year of maintenance.

Hi, Happy May to all of you!

This is my DD's 7th wedding anniversary. I should head out to look for her gift. I haven't yet.

I feel like I had an adventure this morning! After my swim at the health club, I headed out for my Monday trek to the waste management facility to drop off my carful of recyclables. I must have popped open the trunk, but somehow automatically locked the car door shut and running. I had my cell phone, so I called my DH. He was 5 minutes away from his office (25 miles from our house). He came out to unlock the car for me, but it took him about 45 minutes. I even called the local police, but because the waste management facility is in an unincorporated area, I would have had to deal with the county sheriff, but they don't unlock cars for people. It took my DH 45 minutes to get to where I was. In the meantime, I was standing in temperatures of the mid 30's with a definate wind chill. I had wet hair and lightweight clothing on, no socks, just flip flops. I got home around 7:20 am. It is after 10:00 am now and I am not warm yet. I drank hot tea, hot coffee, had some food, burrowed under a down throw to try to warm up.

We spent most of the weekend dealing with putting away stuff in the house. My DH brought home a heavy-duty paper shredder for the weekend. I destroyed 6 years worth of records and made around 8 bags of shredded paper for recycling (hence why I drove out there this morning with the excess recyclables.) Saturday, we did drive out to see the progress on the new house. My DH took pictures of the foundation from many different views. We put the "For Sale by Owner" sign up late yesterday afternoon. I think some people have picked up the information sheet I made up. I still have a bit to do, but the house looks about as empty as it is going to. I still need to attend to some outside sprucing up. We have never sold a house before, so the whole process is somewhat scary. I will say that I have not been concentrating all that much on eating properly under any plan. It should get better now, since most of the hard work is done.

Because I had gotten so chilled this morning, I called and asked if I could stay home today. So, here I am.

I hope all is well with you. Boy Brenda, I wish I was having coffee with you today, I'm still chilly!

__________________
Ilse

380/310(current)/154
5'7"
"It's kind of fun to do the impossible"
Walt Disney

Here are the photos I did for the MLS. The realtor only wanted six, but I did some extras to give her a choice.
Teelbee's MLS candidate photos

In real life, I don't think it looks quite as overgrown - just bursting with spring flowers - many of which don't show up that much in the pics. It's a 1930's cottage bungalow, so I've tried for an Enlish country garden effect outside.

__________________
~~~Teelbee
Back to GOAL!!!
start weight: 176/goal range: 137-134/now: 138
Reached goal in Aug. 2003 - 4rd year of maintenance.

Wow, Teelbee!! Fabulous!! Makes me SO homesick for California!
Peg