Day 116

Finances
1 - Lunch: $17
2 - Coffee: $3.25

Two coffees.

3 - Dinner: $19.48
4 - Bar tab: $6
5 - Water: $1.25

Per diem: $49
Amount under per diem: $2.02

Food
1 - Waffle with maple syrup and a cup of orange juice
2 - Yogurt
3 - Oyster po-boy w/tartar sauce, crab chowder, and fries

I shouldn't have eaten the fries but it was a long day...

4 - One bottle of beer

Crashed a North Florida Division meeting where they had beer...

I tell you what, I make fun of the pan handle but they know how to conduct business here.

5 - Grilled chicken salad and four bottles of beer.
Our last night with the trip and we all cut back a bit.

Workout
30-minutes on the treadmill, running.

I didn't want to do anything at all this morning but I realized that there was NO WAY I could do anything on Thursday so I had to do something today. Thursday I'm leaving the hotel at 6AM to observe a training exercise, I put in a full day of work, catch a 4:30PM flight and get home at 9:30PM. So, you know, I didn't want to have two days of nothing.

Day 115

Finances
1 - Lunch: $7.25
2 - Dinner: $42
3 - Bar Tab: $14.65

Per diem: $49
Amount Over Per Diem: $14.19

Food
1 - A waffle, a small cheese omelet, and a cup of orange juice
2 - Baked chicken, mashed potatoes, steamed veggies, and a salad
3 - I had a bag of pistachios throughout the day
4 - 6oz steak, 5 grilled shrimp, string beans, a sweet potato, grilled toast, one bottle of beer and two glasses of chardonnay
5 - Three bottles of beer

With a coworker...it's a business trip, after all.

Workout
1 - 30-minutes on the treadmill. 20 minute run and 10 minutes on a steep incline
2 - 3 sprints up five flights of stairs

Day 114

I'm in Panama City this weekend on a business trip so a chunk of my finances will be covered. It's a challenge to workout and eat right every day, especially since pan-handle Florida is, you know, pan-handle Florida but I'm going to do what I have to do to get back on course...

Finances
1 - National Airport: $6.83

A magazine and a bottle of soda.

2 - National Airport: $4.27

Coffee, banana, and mints.

3 - Lunch, Memphis Airport: $11.45
4 - Memphis Airport: $9.55

Dramamine and a bottle of water, I was getting airsick for some reason.

5 - Dinner: $37.10
6 - Mini-mart: $12.13

Toothbrush, can of tuna, pistachios, water bottles, etc.

Meals and Incidentals per diem: $36.75
Amount over per diem: $44.58

My dinner was over per diem so I didn't stand a chance. Panama City is $49 per day and the first and last day of travel you only get 75% of that, a ridiculous rule if you ask me. Also, $49 is way too low for Panama City. Oh well, nothing like wasting money on a business trip, I guess.

Food
1 - Toast and peanut butter
2 - A banana
3 - Large chef salad with Italian dressing
4 - A cup of crab soup, grilled mahi mahi with mushrooms and peppers, a side of steamed vegetables, and a glass of Chardonnay.

Workout
1 - 30 minutes on the treadmill. About 15 running and 15 brisk walking with a steep incline.
2 - 50 prisoner squats
3 - 4 sprints up 5 flights of stairs.

Day 113

This'll be the last day of continuous slacking. Drove back from NYC - I'm off to Panama City tomorrow but aside from some wine here and there I'll be all good.

Finances
1 - Gas: $34.75

Food
1 - Egg and cheese on a croissant w/skim milk for coffee
2 - Some dark chocolates
3 - Beef brisket sandwich with two ribs
4 - A grilled cheese and a glass of red wine

Workout
No workout today.

Day 112

Finances

We got comped a hotel room and it covered my afternoon gambling and our breakfast - good stuff.

1 - Dinner: $54

Pizza for me and the family.

2 - Wine store: $60.65

One bottle for dinner, three birthday gifts.

Food
1 - Buffet. Some fried chicken (yeah, I regret that), turkey breast, mashed potatoes, onion rings, mushrooms, biscuit, and gravy.
2 - Skim cappuccino
3 - Thin-crust pizza
4 - Some carrots and dip, goldfish, twizzlers, and a good amount of beer. I didn't log exactly how much. It was a keg party.
5 - Some 2% milk with cookies

Workout
None. Monday I start again. It's been a bad month.

Day 111

Finances
Good day! I won $350 in blackjack which put me in the plus and covered the hotel, dinner, and the late night snack. With that, I had no expenses today.

Food
1 - Toast with peanut butter
2 - Chicken and white rice
3 - Grilled chicken club
4 - Fruit cup
5 - Two crab cake sliders and five bacon wrapped shrimp
6 - Two small slices of pizza and a milk shake
7 - I had around four pints of light beer

Workout
None. After this weekend I try to really get back on track

Day 110

Finances
1 - Coffee: $2
2 - Video games: $7
Some bowling and some Megatouch

Food
1 - Peanut butter and preserves on toast
2 - Banana
3 - Chicken breast and white rice
4 - Tortolleni soup and a knish
5 - Three glasses of red wine
6 - Some fries

Workout
1 - 30-minutes on treadmill
2 - 4 sets of 10 bench presses w/105lbs
3 - 200 crunches

Day 109

Finances
1 - Lunch: $5.21

Food
1 - Peanut butter and preserves on toast
2 - Roast beef on wheat at subway (w/light mayo)
3 - Baked shrimp with a honey mustard dipping sauce (all homemade)
4 - A cookie and a glass of red wine

Workout
1 - 150 push-ups
2 - 200 crunches
3 - 15-minutes with the medicine ball

Day 108

Finances
1 - Metro Card Refill: $20
2 - McCormick & Schmicks: $50

Food
1 - Scrambled eggs with onions and tomatoes and a cup of skim milk
2 - Humus
3 - Roast beef and swiss with mayo on wheat
4 - A banana
5 - A cookie
6 - Chicken breast in a tomato sauce and white rice
7 - Wine with cheese for my wine course
8 - A glass of wine and a cheeseburger with some tempura on the side.

Yeah, two dinners tonight...I really need to get back on course.

Workout
None. Working all day, class all night. I really, really need to get back on course.

Day 107

Finances
1 - Coffee: $2
2 - Lunch: $7.89

Food
1 - Skim milk for coffee
2 - Barbacoa tacos (three, soft)
3 - Chicken tacos (three, soft)
4 - One glass of red wine

Workout
1 - 200 push-ups
2 - 250 crunches

Day 106

Yoiks! Forgot to hit "Publish"...

Finances
1 - Brunch: $23

Food
1 - Crab cake eggs Benedict and home fries with some orange juice
2 - One small slice of pizza
3 - Bowl of turkey chili with some guacamole, salsa, and sour cream.
4 - Chips and dip and two glasses of wine

Workout
1 - 200 push-ups

Day 105

Finances
I should start by noting I sold a lot of books at the Counter Culture Festival. Enough to cover the next couple of weeks of finances.
1 - Starbucks: $3.52
2 - Italian textbook: $82
3 - Gas: $36.90
4 - Parking: $2
5 - Brunch: $71.58

We hit a place up for restaurant week. 20.08 for a three course brunch at a posh restaurant.

6 - Dremo's: $92.50
Not all mine, I tend to buy drinks for a lot of folks at the show and I left a good tip.

Food
1 - Skim cappuccino
2 - Crab Rangoon, eggs Benedict, this chocolate thing, and a pomegranate lemonade
3 - We'll just call it the Counter Culture show. All I ate was humus, but I was sharing several pitchers with several people. I honestly don't think I drank that much but it was impossible to keep track.
4 - Pizza and buffalo wings

Workout
None. Well, besides running a show which includes setting up tables, lugging stuff up and down stairs, etc.

Day 104

Finances
1 - Video Camera: $314.94

I've been wanting to upgrade my old video camera and I figured having a new one for the Counter Culture show wouldn't be a bad idea. It was on sale at Circuit City, down from $500, and I got no interest financing for 3 months. Now I can do a pod on the show and start this Drunken Wine Review thing people seem to be excited about.

2 - Movie tickets: $21

Despite how busy I was I made time for Cloverfield.

Food
1 - Light English Muffin with peanut butter and strawberry preserves
2 - Lasagna with meat sauce and a piece of garlic bread
3 - A small piece of birthday cake
4 - Some popcorn
5 - Slice of white pizza
6 - Some buffalo bites and mozzarella sticks and two pints of light beer

Workout
1 - 100 push-ups, not much of a workout, really.

Day 103

Finances
1 - Lunch: $29
2 - Dinner: $151.18
3 - Valet: $7
4 - Coat check: $1

It was Robin's birthday so, you know. How it goes.

Food
1 - Light English muffin with peanut butter and strawberry preserves
2 - Humus
3 - Cheeseburger with onion crisps and barbecue sauce with a side of mashed potatoes
4 - Dinner appetizers: Mozzarella with tomatoes and peppers in pesto and a pasta dish with tomatoes. There was also some bread on the table that I dipped in olive oil. Robin and I shared.
5 - Dinner main course: Roasted quail stuffed with sausage and truffle in a truffle sauce. There were some greens on the side and I had some of Robin's monk fish.
6 - Dinner desert: This really light sponge cake with chocolate gellato and I had some of Robin's cream puff.
7 - Dinner drinks: Three glasses of red wine over a three-hour sit down.
8 - A slice of birthday cake with skim milk.

Workout
None. With the Counter Culture show on Saturday I doubt I'm going to get much of a workout in until Sunday.

Day 102

Finances
1 - Lunch: $6.32

I left my food bag home again! Twice this week.

2 - Coffee shop: $4
3 - Harris Teeter: $28.45

Milk, eggs, a mini-keg of Heineken light

Food
1 - Waffles with boysenberry syrup and a half-cup of skim milk
2 - Six-inch lean roast beef with cheese and honey mustard from Subway. Bag of baked chips
3 - Blueberry scone and some skim milk for my coffee
4 - Chicken meatballs and rice
5 - Two pints of beer
6 - Skim milk and dark chocolates (three pieces)

Workout

Unfortunately I left my notebook home so I don't have the particulars. However...

1 - 10-minute treadmill warm-up
2 - 30-minutes of weight training. Super-sets of chest-press/seated dip, leg press/calf extension, shoulder press/curls, weighted crunches/hip adduction, hip abduction.

Day 101

Finances
1 - Car payment: $320
2 - Student loans: $150
3 - Gym: $85
4 - Birthday cake: $16.75

Whatevs, she knows she's getting one from Heidelberg and I doubt she reads this blog anyway.

5 - Metro: $3.05
6 - McCormick & Schmick: $43.25

Robin got me the wine class, I picked up the after-wine-class bar tab.

Food
1 - Waffles with homemade blueberry sauce
2 - Humus and pita
3 - Ham, turkey, and provolone on whole wheat with light mayo
4 - Blueberries and blackberries
5 - A couple of chicken meatballs and some rice
6 - Several glasses of wine (I tasted 8 types of wine and one glass of sparkling wine, not sure how many actual glasses it was) with some cheese, crackers, and fruit
7 - Some crab dip with pita bread
8 - Half-cup of skim milk and some dark chocolates

Workout
1 - 30-minutes on the elliptical
2 - 5-minutes on rowing machine (pretty intense setting)

Day 100

Yowza - 100 days in. It's hard to tell if I'm doing well or not. I lost weight but not enough weight. I saved money but not enough money. I worked out fairly consistently but, also, not enough or hard enough.

Finances
1 - Lunch: $9.45
2 - Laundry: $1.50

Food
1 - Two waffles with homemade blueberry sauce
2 - Half of a chicken panini, half cup of clam chowder, and a bag of chips

I left my lunch home.

3 - Everything bagel with strawberry preserves and peanut butter
4 - Sauteed, parmesan-crusted chicken breast with a tomato and onion sauce
5 - A glass of red wine and three home-made cookies

Workout
1 - 100 push-ups
2 - 200 crunches

I was going to go to the gym last night but, while cleaning out our storage area, I sort of dropped a box on my right hand and gave my wrist a nice, deep cut with a sheet of glass at the same time. It was kind of bleeding and throbbing for the rest of the night and I didn't really want to put any pressure on it.

Day 99

Another long day. Robin's brother, errands, football, and the DC Conspiracy Dr. Dremo's send-off meeting where we were basically obligated to get drunk one last time before they shut the bar down.

Finances
1 - Costco: $192.02

Nothing food related. I needed things like socks and some home stuff plus Robin's birthday present. You can get anything at Costco, I love that place.

2 - Parking: $1.75
3 - Library fines: $1.20
4 - Harris Teeter: $39.14

Lunch and breakfast stuff and some things I needed for dinner this week. I still have plenty of chicken breast left but I needed veggies and some other stuff.

5 - Dremo's: $31.50

Food
1 - Crab cake, poached egg, biscuit, and homefries. I also had some bacon and some milk for my orange juice
2 - Homemade cream of tomato soup
3 - Cheeseburger with bacon and fries and six pints of beer
4 - Some milk with some dark chocolate

Workout
No workout today.

Day 98

Long day today. Italian class, open house at the Bethesda Writer's Center where I'll be teaching in February, writing session at Busboy's and Poets, dinner party, and then football game watching with Robin's brother who was in town.

Finances
1 - Breakfast: $14
2 - Lunch: $14.08

Food
1 - Two pancakes with syrup, two scrambled eggs, a sausage patty, and milk for my coffee
2 - Veggies and two glasses of red wine
3 - Humus with pita and a glass of red wine
4 - Various finger foods (chicken in walnut sauce, feta and spinach in filo dough, sesame salmon, etc) and three glasses of red wine
5 - Some nachos and three pints of beer

Workout
1 - 150 push-ups and 250 crunches

Day 97

Finances
1 - Coffee: $2
2 - Comics: $40.77
3 - Five Guys: $6
4 - Lotto: $5
5 - Megatouch: $9
6 - Dinner/Bar: $66.22

Food
1 - All bran with blueberries, blackberries, and skim milk with a cup of orange juice
2 - A Clementine
3 - Ham and provolone with light may on whole wheat
4 - Cheeseburger
5 - Six buffalo wings, some onion rings, and four pints of beer

Workout
1 - 30-minutes on the elliptical
2 - 20-minutes on the stationary bike

Day 96

Finances
Harris Teeter: $9.31

Shrimp, mustard, pasta

Food
1 - Scrambled egg beaters with onions, asparagus, and tomatoes with a cup of orange juice
2 - Humus and pita
3 - Left-over chicken marsala
4 - Blueberries and blackberries
5 - Shrimp scampi with pasta and a dinner roll
6 - Two glasses of white wine and a couple of pieces of dark chocolate

Workout
1 - 150 push-ups
2 - 300 crunches
3 - 10 minutes with jump rope

Day 95

Finances
1 - Harris Teeter: $8.29

Marsala wine, red pepper, and sliced mushrooms.

2 - I had to refill my POSTCARDS stock but that's a business expense. I just wanted to note it, that's all.

Food
1 - Scrambled egg beaters with asparagus and onions in a pita pocket w/ketchup. A half-cup of orange juice and a cup of vegetable juice.
2 - Humus and pita
3 - Left-over chicken sautee
4 - A Clementine
5 - Chicken marsala, a small serving of pasta with sauce, and a dinner roll with butter
6 - A glass of white wine

Workout
1 - 150 crunches w.medicine ball
2 - 60 sit-ups w/medicine ball
3 - 75 push-ups

Day 94

Finances
1 - Harris Teeter: $15.58

Chicken broth, asparagus, milk, and pita bread.

Food
1 - Scrambled egg beaters with onions and tomatoes. Two pieces of turkey bacon, ketchup for dipping and a cup of orange juice and a cup of V8 for drinking.
2 - Two tablespoons of humus with roasted pine nuts and seasonings.

I didn't have anything to dip in the humus so I just ate it off a spoon. Surprisingly good.

3 - Left over chicken saute from last night.
4 - A Clementine
5 - A banana
6 - Chicken breasts sauteed in a little bit of butter with a wine, chicken broth, and garlic sauce and a side of asparagus
7 - Some cheese and roasted chestnuts with three glasses of red wine.

Good wedding planning food, which is what we were doing last night.

8 - Half-cup of skim milk and three pieces of dark chocolate

One snack too many...

Workout

I only had a little less than a half-hour at the gym so I went hard and fast on everything, very few breaks.

1 - 10-minutes on elliptical
2 - 5-minutes on row machine
3 - 3 sets of 50 crunches on ab-machine with 110-lb resistance
4 - 3 sets of 10 dips with 40lbs of assist

Day 93

Finances
1 - Classes: $208

I'm taking an Italian language class and an Italian cooking class.

2 - Rent: $1595
3 - Harris Teeter: $23.76

Bottle of wine, vitamins, and water

Food
1 - Eggbeaters and turkey bacon on a whole-wheat tortilla with a cup of V8 and a cup of orange juice
2 - A Clementine
3 - Ham and provolone on whole wheat with light mayo
4 - A banana
5 - Chicken breast sauteed in white wine, lemon juice, and orange juice with onions and garlic, a side salad (lettuce, pine nuts, and tomatoes with a balsamic spritz), and some roasted veggies
6 - Glass of red wine and two pieces of dark chocolate

Workout
1 - 20 minutes on elliptical
2 - 4 sets of 10 bench presses with 105 lbs
3 - 3 sets of 60 yoga-ball crunches with 12 lb medicine ball in hand
4 - 3 sets of 20 incline sit ups, no back support
5 - 3 sets of 20 captain's chairs

Day 92

Finances
1 - Coffees: $4
2 - Church: $20
3 - Hirsshorn Museum: $63.26

This is technically a business expense. I was out there doing some research for the YA book and fell in love with a couple of pieces that I'll be incorporating into the project. I purchased two books and a DVD.

4 - Costco: $83.18

A couple of weeks worth of chicken, fruits, and humus. I also purchased two new cookbooks.

Food
1 - Hotdog with mustard, ketchup, relish, and saurkraut
2 - White beans in olive oil, some pasta in olive oil, and a little pasta in pesto with grilled chicken.
3 - Three glasses of wine and some dark chocolates

Workout
1 - 150 push-ups
2 - 250 crunches
3 - 10 minutes with the jump rope
4 - 20 minutes with the medicine ball

Day 91

Amazingly, over this two weeks of slacking while traveling I only gained four pounds. I didn't even spend as much as I thought I would. Tomorrow I get back on track all the way.

Finances
1 - Gas: $31.73
2 - Lunch: $18.33
3 - Gas: $31
It was fair, Robin did the entire 8 hour drive while I caught up on my reading.
4 - Dinner: $52.45

Dr. Delivery takeout, most of the cost was overpriced food and delivery charges.

5 - Six pack: $5.41

Food
1 - Bagel with butter
2 - Fried chicken sandwich
3 - Some dark chocolate
4 - Some nuts
5 - Mixed shellfish (steamed), some pasta, some white beans in olive oil, and a piece of garlic bread.
6 - Three glasses of wine

Workout
None. Tomorrow.

Day 90

Ugh...driving all day hence the late update...

Finances
1 - Lunch: $6.81
2 - Walgreens: $9.73
Baby formula and soda.
3 - Keno: $20
I spent forty, won twenty
4 - Dinner/Drinks: $46

Food
1 - White meat chicken, squash, and steamed veggies with a piece of cornbread.
2 - Small bowl of turkey chili with some chips and mozzerella cheese
3 - One steamed clam, one buffalo chicken strip, one piece of garlic bread, one piece of regular bread, a BLT, one bottle and four pints of Bud Light

Workout
None. Like I said, Sunday, when I get home.

Day 89

Finances
1 - Panera: $4.17
2 - Starbucks: $9.19
3 - Pizza Wagon: $5

I picked up a sub for Robin.

4 - Shop Right: $5.97

Bread for Seamus' birthday party

5 - Lottery Tickets: $10
6 - Keno: $15
7 - Wine store: $21.61

Wine and cheese for Seamus' birthday party

Food
1 - Small Pecan Roll
2 - Blueberry Scone
3 - Half of a small Fiesta Salad (grilled chicken, black beans, and corn)
4 - Light Frappacino
5 - Turkey chili w/mozzarella
6 - A couple of bites of Stromboli and a serving of lasagna
7 - Birthday cake
8 - Three glasses of wine and two glasses of beer
9 - One pint of beer

Workout
None. Sunday I start again, I imagine, since that's when I'm back home.

Day 88

Finances
1 - Target: $50.25
2 - Panera: $8.73
3 - Keno: $11
4 - Dinner: $18

Food
1 - Bowl of crackling oat bran with whole milk
2 - Half chicken sandwich, half bowl of chicken noodle soup, and a bag of chips
3 - Cheese and supersetta
4 - Lobster bisque and an open faced turkey sandwich with stuffing, baked potato, and cranberry sauce
5 - Two buffalo chicken bites
6 - A pecan roll...small one, apparently only 100 calories

Workout
None. It's hard to workout here. No gym access, too cold outside, and too cramped indoors. I'm back in DC soon.

Day 87

Finances
1 - Gas: $30.12
2 - Soda: $1.60

Food
1 - Half of an egg and cheese sandwich and some hash browns with skim milk for coffee
2 - Grilled chicken salad
3 - Various Chinese foods - egg rolls, shrimp tempora, rice, etc. Mostly fried, unfortunately.

Workout
None - tomorrow. Today I nursed my sickness, drove to Boston, and spent the evening with my godson.

Day 86

Late update -- drove to Boston today...this was New Year's Eve, by the way. I f'ed up a bit the past couple of days but I'll be getting back on track tomorrow.

Finances
1 - Banana Republic: $2.97

It was $102.97 but I had a $100 gift card.

2 - Metro card: $10
3 - Lunch: $4
4 - Old navy: $23.25
5 - Wine store: $83.90

Two bottles of wine and three bottles of champagne for the party.

6 - Five fried calzones: $20

To bring to Boston for Robin's family

7 - Groceries: $15.39

Dips and some cheese for the party

8 - Sour cream: $3.29
9 - Cream cheese and mints: $5.79

Turns out I wasn't supposed to get the sour cream. Oh well.

10 - James: $5

Homeless guy that stands in front of the Korean store, he's been there since I was a kid.

Food
1 - Blueberry muffin with butter and a bite of Robin's bagel and sip of her orange juice
2 - Hot Dog with saurkraut, ketchup, and mustard
3 - Hot chocolate and a bacon/dark chocolate truffle
4 - Some of Robin's pretzel
5 - Meats, cheeses, breads, and wines
6 - A pasta dish (w/red meat) and wines
7 - Cupcake and champagne and wine
8 - Two bottles of Bud Light

If I had to estimate how much I drank last night I'd say a bottle and a half of red wine, a bottle of champagne, and two bottles of beer over a seven hour period. Maybe two bottles of wine.

Workout
No workout