The obligatory "catching up" post

It truly shocked me to see that I had not blogged since December 2010 (and that wasn't a real entry).  I blame Facebook.

Since my last real post, several things have happened.

Most importantly, my fifth daughter, Claire, was born in December 2010.

For those who followed my posts about marathon training, you should be pleased to learn that I did, indeed, complete the 2010 Dallas White Rock Marathon.  I also completed the 2011 Rock and the 2012 OKC Memorial Marathon.  I am currently training for the 2012 NYC ING Marathon in November.

I lost my job at the Dallas DA's Office at the end of 2010 and spent a few months trying to find a new job before deciding to open my own solo law practice.

My weight loss journey started back up again last fall.  During marathon training in 2010, I had lost 20 pounds.  When I took a few months off before kicking it back up in 2011, I had gained 10 of that back.  I thought I would be able to lose that 10 again just as easily as I had the year before, but it was not to be.  In fact, over the first 3 1/2 months of training last year, I gained 3 pounds to get back up to 250.  In September, I downloaded the MyFitnessPal app for my phone and started tracking my daily caloric intake and burn.  I got down as low as 193 in April.  Right now, I'm back up a little because I haven't been as diligent as I need to be.

So, what inspired my return to this corner of the blogosphere?  I was a Delegate to the 2012 Texas Republican Convention last week.  Although I am not particularly thrilled with who wound up as the GOP Presidential nominee this year (sorry to my Ron Paul supporting friends, it really is a done deal at this point), the convention (as tiring as it was) renewed my enthusiasm for politics.  Thus, you can expect a decidedly political focus going forward.  That's not to say that I won't mention other things, but politics will be the primary subject.

A Few Random Thoughts

Marathon training has been a little rough. It never dawned on me that donating double red blood cells might not be a good idea when one is running about 20 miles a week.

Work has been a little weird because one of our prosecutors has had laryngitis since last Tuesday, so I've been having to go back out to the JP Courts to cover for her.

I'm about to turn 42, and I still get people who don't believe me when I tell them how old I am. Many are skeptical when I tell them how much I weigh, too.

I'm looking forward to our Pastor getting back from vacation this week. I miss his preaching.

We leave for Walt Disney World in 21 days. I anxiously anticipate seeing the looks on my kids' faces when we enter the Magic Kingdom.

Is it really possible that we might have a day with a high less than 100° this week?

Long, Strange Trip

I can't explain why I haven't updated here since April. Let's blame it on Facebook.

Life has been through many twists and turns over the past 9 months.

To keep it short:

Work is still work.

I won an acting award for my performance in Suessical: the Musical as Best Actor in a Featured Role at the Awards Gala for Kaufman County Civic Theatre.

I decided to run for District Attorney in my county, and then at the last minute I had to drop out because of a work-related issue.

As a result of my candidacy, I missed an opportunity to appear on "Jeopardy!" I can only hope that now that I'm no longer a candidate, they will give me another shot. This is only the latest installment in this saga. You can read a brief account of my Jeopardy! Tale of Woe.

I've gained a little weight, but not so much that it's depressing.

I don't do New Year's Resolutions, but I have decided to get in shape and prepare to Run the Rock in December 2010.

Health Update

Went to the Doctor on Friday. I had lost 15 pounds since March. Cholesterol was down to 142. Bad Cholesterol is down to 88.

Doctor was happy. I'm happy.

I still need to lose about 50-60 pounds, but I've made a start.

Fast, Effective Weight Loss Plan

Want to lose 5 pounds overnight? Get a stomach virus like I did yesterday.

I'm feeling better already, but I was miserable from about 9:00 last night until I fell asleep at 11:30 this morning and slept for 5 hours. My stomach still isn't completely right, but I'm pretty sure the worst is over.

Quick Update

I've been busy lately. I bought a bicycle about a month and a half ago. Then, I joined a local gym a few weeks after that. In all, since I bought the bike, I have lost 11 pounds, and my waist has started to shrink already.

I finished The Philadelphia Story at KCCT in April, and yesterday, I had my first rehearsal with Garland Summer Musicals for Damn Yankees. It should be fun, but tiring.

A little sickness is going around the family. First, it was Hannah, then Erin. Tonight, my stomach started feeling not quite right. I hope I can avoid the unpleasantness the girls have had to go through.

A New Beginning

I've put on a few pounds recently. After losing 50 pounds three years ago, I've let 25-30 of them creep back onto my frame. It's time to do something about that. I got back up on the Gazelle Freestyle Elite tonight for thirty minutes.

I need to get rid of the excess baggage.

Here's the new "BEFORE" pic:

Weight Update

I have somehow managed to drop 8.5 pounds in the past 6 weeks or so.  I haven't been doing anything out of the ordinary.  In fact, I think I've probably eaten worse than usual.

Whatever the cause, I'll take it. 

Back on the Weight Loss Wagon

I decided that I have to make another stab at shedding my excess baggage.  Long time readers will know that I lost 50 pounds a couple of years ago.  Sadly, I've managed to put 28 of those back.  So, I started last Monday, June 25th with a plan to slim down.  I have started bringing a gallon of water with me to work each day, and I drink all of it before I go home.  I have also committed to cutting way down on the snacking during the day.  One of my weaknesses has been the candy jar on the desk of a co-worker.  I found myself grabbing a handful of M&Ms entirely too often.  Like I did in 2004-05, I am still going to eat what I want.  Just less of it.

I am not going to post weekly reports (unless I change my mind), but I will try to keep y'all updated as things progress.  Since last Monday, I have lost 3 pounds.  It probably would have been more, but I ate a lot when my wife and I went out for our 9th Anniversary last week.

Getting in Shape Update

When I started this quest last Tuesday, I weighed 267.0 pounds (my scale measures in half pounds). So, my plan is to update the weight on here every Tuesday

Starting Weight = 267.0

Last Week's Weight = 267.0

Today's Weight = 263.0

Weight Loss in past week = 4.0 pounds



TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS
= 4.0 pounds