What to do...

The other night I ate wheat products. I hadn't planned to but it happened. I hadn't made it the full 8 weeks without gluten but I was close, ok, at least halfway there.

Yesterday, the day after I ate wheat, I had no symptoms. No puffiness, no dry eye (in fact, I didn't use eyedrops at all that day), nothing. Today I had minimal problems with dry eye but certainly not what I've experienced in the past.

Does this mean wheat is not my problem? Since I stopped eating wheat, I've only had days of relief. I've been told you need to go approx 8 weeks to feel relief of symptoms but wouldn't you feel *some* improvement? And wouldn't consuming gluten cause more symptoms, not the lack of symptoms I had?

Moving forward, I went to a rheumatologist today, had a blood test and spoke with her about my symptoms (dry eye) as well as a number of other things, including my diet. She seemed very convinced that wheat is not my problem. So, how much do I rely on a Vega test result when an M.D. who specializes in auto-immune disorders tells me there is no connection between wheat consumption and dry eye issues?

My latest WANT

Body Bling by Scott Barnes and available locally at Fez Beauty.

I tried it out (on the back of my hand) at Fez today and it's just beautiful. I tried it out thinking it was a shimmer lotion and was surprised when it gave the back of my hand subtle color and just a bit of sheen. All I could think of was how sexy and lovely it would look on bare legs, particularly in the winter when most of us Oregonians are a pasty, white color. I tried both the Platinum and the Original, one on each hand, and either would look great, camouflaging those little imperfections without having to rely on hose.

If I can't eat bread, I'll shop online...

Here's some cute things from le Train Bleu

Botanical Gardens Bumble Bee ring on sale! I just wish it came in another color since I'm not fond of yellow...

Ilse Jacobsen Buckle Boots. I'm so loving boots lately that I can hardly wait until Fall. I'm particularly fond of these because they are flat -- always a bonus when you're near 40 and chasing after a three-year-old. I still love high heels but after years and years of thinking I'd never go back to wearing flats, I'm starting to feel the value (aka lack of pain) of wearing a more practical shoe.

Depressed and Angry

God, this sucks. I just don't know how I'm going to make it 8 weeks wheat free. Tonight we went to a wine-tasting.

All of the appetizers were wheat-ridden. We sit down at the table and there's a large basket of yummy looking WHEAT crackers. I hold out for dinner. Surely there will be something there for me, right?

It's buffet-style. First up, lamb. Nope, can't do lamb (it's a taste thing not a sensitivity). Next, beef. Can't do that either. After that, something that's either chicken or salmon but looks like it's covered in soy sauce (wheat again). Then salad rolls. I asked a waiter if they are wheat free. He checks and comes back to tell me the chef has gone home and they aren't sure. The desserts -- a nice selection of tarts, again, wheat.

I can't have a glass of wine (or more) on an empty stomach. Bad news for a number of reasons. Yet, here I am at a wine-tasting and I can't eat a thing that's being served. Had I been smart, I would have packed a box of wheat-free crackers or eaten large quantities of food prior to leaving the house but I'm new to this and well, not smart about it -- obviously.

It's hard to have fun in a room full of people drinking and eating when you feel like you can't do either (tiny sips of wine just don't cut it). Husband looks at me, in my misery, and says, "Let's go. You don't look like you're having fun; let's go somewhere you can eat something." I ask him if he's ok with that and yes, he's completely cool with it.

We head out and try to figure out where I can eat something substantial (that isn't chicken, I'm bored to death with chicken). First thought is Jake's. The wait is 35 minutes. Not worth it. Next stop, Andina; 45 minute wait. I could die of starvation before we'd have our food so we head home. Husband offers to stop at the grocery store but at this point, I've resigned myself to a life of lettuce and tell him no.

Yes, I realize some of the problem (ok, probably a lot of the problem) is me in this case but taking wheat out of my diet is akin to taking a limb. And yes, I *kind of* know what that feels like since I lost part of my left & dominant hand in a car accident at 16 and in addition to the mental & physical anguish I suffered as a teen, I currently suffer from bouts of phantom pain (completely bizarre) and have arthritis in some of my joints.

For nearly 40 years, the bulk of my diet has been wheat-based. I don't care for most types of meat and veggies, while heavenly, don't exactly fill you up with any sort of staying power. I live on wheat. Bread, muffins, cookies, crumbs, croutons, cake, you name it; yum.

And now, wheat has been ripped from my arms, leaving me crying and bereft. Empty and alone. STARVING.

...

Arriving home, I ate. Tomatoes with balsamic first and then I dipped into the freezer for some rice-flour "English muffins" (nothing like a real English muffin but at least they are filling). And I poured myself a glass of wine.

...

No longer hungry, I'm less depressed but still missing wheat. Part of me knows I'm strong enough to make it through 8 weeks. Part of me feels weak; is this all worth it?

Recycle!

Loving this from The Container Store:

2-Bin Recycler

We don't have a lot of room in our kitchen for recyclables but a couple of years ago, I found a great two-bin unit that fit in the stairwell to the basement (near the kitchen and on the way to the garage). Ours doesn't look half as nice as this one.

Test Drive

Today I was given the opportunity to test drive a prototype of the Nissan LEAF. It's the first (or one of the first) 100% electric, no emission vehicle available. I've driven a couple of Toyota Prius (what IS the plural of Prius?) before and while it's a nice car, I'm just not that enthusiastic about it so I was interested to see what I'd think of the LEAF.

Always one to throw people for a curve ball, I brought along my 3 year old daughter. Hey, if they want to sell this car to moms, I'm gonna test drive it that way, carseat and all. The carseat fit well. Since it's a prototype, it didn't have the latch system (I had to explain what that meant) but easy enough, that's what seatbelts are for. In went the carseat, in went the child. The real deal WILL have the latch system, if you're wondering.

I climbed into the front seat with my host, a Nissan rep, in the passenger seat. We didn't take a long drive but long enough that I was able to get the feel of the car, test out the "go" from 0 to slightly above the speed limit (I won't say how much above but I was impressed at how quickly and smoothly it accelerated), ask plenty of questions and give lots of opinions from my mom-perspective.

The LEAF is nice. Supremely quiet. Ever the thinker, I immediately thought of my father-in-law and, increasingly, my dad, who are getting a little hard of hearing. If you know people that are losing their hearing, you know how difficult it is to have a conversation with them in a loud spaces. Well, this car is made for those people. The only sounds you hear are outside the car because there isn't an engine to mask them. Turns out they had to tinker with the windshield wipers because, in this car, you realize exactly how loud regular wiper systems are.

After pondering how great this car would be for people who aren't able to converse in loud settings, I asked my host about sight-impaired people and seeing-eye dogs. I read somewhere that electric cars can be quite dangerous for the sight-impaired because electric cars are too quiet. Turns out Nissan has solved that problem. They've added a noise that you can hear OUTSIDE the car, if the car is going below a certain speed -- basically your toodling around town speed when you're most likely to encounter crosswalks and that sort of thing. There is no added noise above a certain speed because at some point, noise happens. Cool.

The interior. The seats were cushy. I liked that as I have a bony rear and hard seats are the bane of my existence. Well, one of the many banes. Bonus: Turns out they are made of RECYCLED PLASTIC BOTTLES. Yes! So glad to hear there is something being produced out of those insidious things besides more plastic.

The car is fully equipped with GPS and all that good stuff. One of the most exciting (to me) features included the "fuel" gage. It not only tells you how many miles you have left in your charge but also how far you can go. Yup, with a map. The car I drove had a "fuel" radius that would take us past Vernonia (the car was less than half full). Probably further but I was so fascinated with the fact that a map was telling me how far the car could go on its current charge that I wasn't really looking past that, plus, I was driving. Gotta keep the eyes on the road!

Like most cars, it has a place to plug in your iPhone, your iPod and all of the other doodads that I didn't recognize. Something about a prong system?! Anyway, it's loaded. Plenty of cupholders and the glove box is big enough I suggested adding a shelf.

The other suggestions I made? More places to put stuff. It has one of those keyless starts and if you have a car with one, consider yourself lucky if you're not always losing the keys. If you're me, you lose them in your purse, if you're my husband, you lose them in that skinny spot between the seat and the console, argh! Earlier this year I rented a car while out of town and the car had a little cubby for the keys. Loved it and suggested it.

I also mentioned a special pocket for iPhones and the like. Much better than having your phone sliding around or offering temptation because you see a text come in and well, we know YOU don't read/respond to text messages when you're driving but human nature says a lot of people do.

I also suggested some "mom" things like automatic hatchdoor (is that a word?) and video screens on the headrests for the kidlets. Nissan Man said they were trying to keep the price affordable, which makes sense but there's a reason moms drive mini vans and while space is one issue, some of the amenities definitely matter when you're carting around a 3 year old... or any kid(s). I told him these things could be offered in the "luxury" package and he seemed to like that idea.

Oh, and for those wondering if an electric car will put your baby to sleep the way a gas guzzler will? We arrived back at PGE with my angelic 3 year old fast asleep.

Oh, one last thing: The Battery. Unlike your iPhone, the batteries do not have a number of times you can charge them before they die. After about 10 years of use, the charges won't hold quite as well but still will hold. When the battery does die? It goes to PGE who will use it for solar power or something like that (I should have taken notes). The important thing is, it will live another life, NOT head for the landfill.

You can charge this car on any regular outlet. Seriously. If the car is on "empty", it will take about 20 hours for it to be "full" on a regular outlet; unless you are doing some looooooong drives, a regular outlet is more than sufficient. And by regular outlet, I mean like the one you plug your blender into, nothing special. Just plug the car in at night, like you do your iPhone and in the morning, unplug and drive w/more than enough charge to get you where you want to go. If you want to go the exciting route, you can buy yourself a fancy, schmancy charger that is about the size of a shoe box but snazzier looking and ready for insta-charge. The charger isn't cheap but you do get a tax credit. IMO, most people won't need the charger so nothing to stress about if your pocketbook is aching.

*Thanks to PGE for giving me the opportunity to learn more about The EV Project and the Nissan LEAF

** Thanks to @OnPointCU for directing me to the plural of Prius article

WTH?

The Flair Hair Bandana available at Catalog Favorites

Things like this make me question the intelligence of humanity.

Gluten Free Chocolate Cookies

Ok, so this new diet thing hasn't been going so well. I spent the first 3 weeks failing completely while being angry that I needed to cut out way too many things I love to *hopefully* be healthy. What is life without bread, pasta, decaf coffee & CHOCOLATE and WINE?

I decided I'm simply not strong enough to deal with all of these items at the same time. It may not be the most efficient way to do things but I'm keeping my occasional decaf, and chocolate and wine, as often as I need. My anger level has diminished considerably since I've allowed myself these things.

I've heard from some people that cutting wheat from their diet resulted in 5-10 lbs of weight loss. Hmmm, not so for me. I spent the first 3 weeks looking for (and eating) chocolate & wheat-free treats. Nevermind that before this diet, I rarely "needed" dessert but such is life. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

To satisfy my chocolate needs, I've been dabbling in ready-made chocolate cookies. So far I've tried three.

Ian's Organic Cookie Buttons - Chocolate Chip

Very crunchy, not popcorn-like-crunchy but almost hard. Not too hard but if you have fragile teeth or a lot of mouth work, perhaps not for you. Sweet with tiny chocolate chips.

Ener-G Food's Chocolate Cookies

These are virtually pointless, IMO. Scratch that; they are a good option if you're using them for a cookie pie crust or want a lightly flavored biscuit. They are dry and kind of flavorless if you're looking for actual chocolate flavor.

Nana's No Gluten Chocolate Crunch Cookie

The best of the bunch (so far), IMO. They have an earthy texture & flavor, thanks to the crispy rice, that I'd probably skip if given the option but still, the chocolate flavor is most certainly there and they are soft and chewy like a homemade cookie vs. hard like the Cookie Buttons.

One last (unrelated to chocolate) note: If you bake a gluten-free pizza, set a timer -- or don't -- honestly, the burned part tastes better than the rest of it.