h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

so good having an oven again.
made homemade pizza yesterday - somewhat over-estimated how much dough to make.... but oddly there wasn't any leftover.... just made two massive pizzas for me and W, with chicken (that I roasted in the oven a few days back), onion, sweetcorn, homemade tomato sauce, garlic, mozzarella etc
That was so* many carbs so a low carb dinner tonight;
layered cabbage and lamb casserole/bake/laisgana was ing gorgeous... best cabbage meal I have ever had; basically flashed the cabbage with boiling water from the kettle, in the collender, then fried off a ton of thinny sliced onion, with the halal lamb with rosemary black pepper and paprika.... layered cabbage first, then the meat, then more cabbage, then more meat, then cabbage, and a final layer of meat on top; threw the leftover tomato sauce for the pizza over that, plus a tad of water to make it more liquid, then threw mozzarella on the top.... - worked out about 600 Kcal per portion; I was making enough for us tonight... - there is enough leftover for another meal for both of us tomorrow night so filling, and only a whisker over 300 KCal - just as well as I'm off to the pub soon with one of my more insane friends

Was at gym this morning, mainly cardio today;
did the weird escalator 'step' machine (not done that before) ; basically four escalator steps, constantly going down... and so I walk up... and up... and up, never quite over-shooting the top step... started real low, then got up to 48 steps per minute for a while, then went higher up to about 60 something steps minute I think... did that for 40 minutes
Then was in the weight room for the last 20 minutes or so, dead lifting, dead lift/jerks, squats, curls, etc, plus some balancing on the exercise ball, and 'high kicks' inside the climbing frame cage thing....
had bulghur with some roast chicken for lunch, with plain low fat yoghurt and pickled chili peppers - and oh, breakfast was porridge with almonds and some jam no gym tomorrow, as I plan to have ahangover

Drew an 'issue' pedometer at my weight reduction clinic meeting today, still need to learn how to use it.

Much to my amazement, weight down five pounds (from 227) last week.

(Spinal) osteoarthris clinic tomorrow.

The clinics and apps never stop do they! - and well done on the weight loss! - I don't appear to be losing any weight at all at the moment; but I suspect its because I'm gaining so much muscle bulk; I know, now, when I wear jeans and a tee shirt.... and tuck the tee shirt in... - that weird... odd... strange 'flat' bit where my tummy used to be, is something I can't recall ever* having ... not even when I was 16 or 17 years old; and not even when I weighed a stone or more lighter than I do now - my bottom is vanishing too and round my hips, top of the legs,

not feeling great today... seems I've some kind of infection thing going on... sore throat, bit of a 'head', I suspect a cold or similar, so having to updose the steroids and feeling so grotty - I never used to have any problems with colds, etc, but now with the reduced immune function they make me so ill, even when its a really tiny stupid infection doubling steroids... doubling vitamin C, and taking on plenty of fluid, - must try get some sodium intake raised today, to avoid dehydration

breakfast was porridge, was expecting to go to gym, but way too ill

made it out for a short walk to the bank and a bit of shopping with W, then came home for a nap... but couldn't sleep, then had bulghur wheet for lunch, with the last of the chicken breast we roasted several days ago with low fat yoghurt - I skipped the chilis today, as I wasn't sure that was a good idea - my nose is starting to run well enough on its own, without the capsicum adding to it fish tonight for dinner I think... either haddock, or tuna steak, or maybe rainbow trout

Goodluck with the clinic app still awaiting to hear from my bone clinic place, I've been refered, but no appointment yet... -= trying to figure out when, or if, we can get away this year for holidays; asides anything I'm really missing DQ, and need a trip to see her in Sweden... soon before I go insane

raining here heavy now... may go hide in bed again...

*Before* you go insane? Might be a *little* late for that...

I'm interested in the lamb/cabbage dish - minced lamb, or meat pieces? Slices?

...clinic with a gym...

First session mainly diagnostic, with a view to identifying treatabke problems related to the osteoarthritis, results so far good, 11 sessions to go, then probably another round following surgery for my remaining herniations late spring.

...must bring my weight down in the meantime for optimal results.

that does not sound like a walk to the pub, ITIWBS

All the best of to you!

Nope... doesn't sound like a walk to the pub... or park... so best of luck... heck the ewight loss thing can be hard enough itself, without the added confusions created by physical limitations and suchlike

The lamb thing;

1 big onion, sliced and diced thinly
250 Grams minced halal lam (well its halal because we've found a fabulous butchers that is hallal, just next to our gym)
some olive oil.
Garlic, paprika, black pepper.
fry the onion, then the mince, in the oil, adding the paprika, garlic, pepper etc...

Then get the cabbage head, nad slice it in half (it was about 800 grams the whole head),
The half we used; separate the leaves out, and into a colander, - drench with boiling water from the kettle....

layer a oven-proof dish (I used a shallower ceramic one, but was thinking to use the deeper cast iron one),
start with the cabbage, then part of the mince lamb/onion etc on top, then more cabbage, then more lamb... more cabbage (tearing up any leaves too big to layer nicely), finish with a layer of the lamb; pour over this the tomatos;

I'd blitzed in the food processor thing, a can of chopped tomatos, with garlic, and oragino and rosemary; so used that tipped over it...

Throw torn up (or grated) mozzarella over the top of that... - bake until done...

That made enough for W and me to have it two nights on a row - there was slightly less left for the second night, so we had a tin of bolotti beans, drained rinsed and heated through, to go with it

I'm planning something involving bacon and onions with the remaining cabbage, maybe tomorrow night

We had haddock tonight, in the end with baked beans and chips... because I was feeling too rubbish to cook anything more complicated - asides the baked beans of course, the rest could just be thrown in the oven ... I like the new oven... Its called Orsonne (a female version of Orson for a reason too obscure to explain)

most appliences in our house, have female names... again. I'm not quite sure anymore- I blame Bee, and DH lollypop, and unicorn, and bear, and froggy, and cow, and all my other teddy bears - you see, they're all lesbians.... err... I realy can't recall why now... - that may have been a consequence of my getting them not long after I had the stroke, and during chemotherapy

actually.... about the only thing that hasn't got a female name, is the exercise ball; called Wilson, for obvious reasons.

We have a hob called 'Steve' - though, curiously, she's female too.

we've a shopping bag called poochy. and. so on... and...

see?; just imagined if I did go insane!

I know a girl called Stevie--it's short for Stephanie

People used to call my Mom 'Jo', short for "Joan".

My maker started to make strange moaning sounds, so I named her Marvin

Some time later all the diodes down her left side gave up and she is now history

But since I returned to make the old fashioned way - heating water in a kettle and pour it down a paper filter, you know - I've saved a lot on electrickery