Sunday, November 5, 2017

Daylight Savings Time

Last night I set my new wrist watch and pocket watch back one hour in anticipation of the shift to Daylight Savings Time (DST) this morning. I brought along four other watches on this trip but I have no intention of re-setting them unless and until I wear them.  Three of them may even reset themselves because they're somehow tied to a GPS or satellite.  All I know is that when I bought them I needed only choose from the settings the closest urban centre and select whether I wished the device to accommodate DST.  Besides I always prefer using any new device for the first while.  In addition the opportunity to wear a watch in this environment is fairly limited, given that when I am bicycling I don't want anything strapped to my wrist to contaminate my tan line; and certainly when I am swimming I don't wear a watch (even if they're purportedly "water resistent" whatever that means). The number of times we "go out" is infrequent but when we do I do like wearing a watch.

We were up before five o'clock this morning. I guess that means it was six o'clock "old time".  We've been continuously puttering since then. Below is a photo of what I prepared for dinner last night (and what I'll probably prepare every night for quite some time).

It's heavy on the veggies (chopped cilantro, sliced mini cucumber, green pepper shards, halved tomatoes, squash spirals and Gorgonzola cheese), drenched in fresh squeezed lemon juice, a dribble of olive oil and a smattering of ground salt. I followed it up with blackberries in Kéfir.  For breakfast this morning it was the protein balance - a salmon filet, a hamburger pattie, American cheese slices (2) and lots of bacon. With coffee. Oh, and I started with Florida mandarin orange wedges (which are difficult to peel contrary to their advertisement).  As far as I am concerned this routine nourishment gives me an even-handed diet.  There certainly isn't much in the way of sugar or starch. Since last April (when I recall weighing at least 230 pounds if not in fact slightly more) I have reduced to 215 pounds (sometimes as low as 210 pounds).  So in six months I've lost 15 pounds which means it is a slow process.  Even if I bump the loss up to 20 pounds it's still only 3 pounds per month which means the weekly advance is almost indecipherable. I can't say that the effort has been painful in spite of being painfully slow.  It's mostly just a matter of deciding that certain things aren't good for me - like pecan pie, peanut butter, tea biscuits, English muffins, granola, maple syrup, Nutella and Carnation evaporated milk. I just keep reminding myself that there was a time when I thought cigarettes and booze were a good thing.  One thing is certain, I am never hungry.  I suffered the consequences of yearnings more when I dipped into anything with sugar.  Otherwise - that is, if I keep the sugar completely at bay - there is little threat of recidivism.

Since we arrived on Daytona Beach Shores three weeks ago on October 16th last I have bicycled almost every day.  Unquestionably it is a pleasant exercise. But I have begun to feel the repercussions, among them a sore backside and stiff hamstrings.  So I decided to give it a rest today.  I still wanted the sun so I decided to lie in the sun by the pool, something I hadn't done as yet.  Because the pool faces east onto the Ocean the sun - even at nine o'clock (new time) in the morning - was already beginning to make its way toward the southeast angle of the building roof.  There was however considerable time remaining before it made its way that far.  Accordingly I positioned a chaise longue at the north end of the pool in the open facing directly into the sun.  The chaise longue is remarkably comfortable unlike many similar pieces.  I attribute its comfort to being broader than most with pliable plastic strappings.  The length was probably slightly more than most as well.  As a result within moments I was falling asleep in the sun.  I awoke at ten o'clock and spent a few moments taking photos of my surrounding space.  It was another windy day and the seas showed it.  At one point the lifeguard was blowing his shrill whistle to admonish a young surfer to keep away from the support pillars of the pier.  I can tell you that the strength of the undertow is more than sufficient to toss a young man about in any direction.  There are signs warning swimmers to stay clear of the pier for that reason.

I returned to my cooking schedule and did my backside for the next half hour before leaving and returning to the apartment.  There I showered and changed.  I made up my mind to spend this Sunday afternoon driving my car and maybe doing a couple of errands.  My first stop was to fill the gas tank at the corner station on S Atlantic Avenue where I customarily go.  Though there are many other closer gas stations I prefer to use a larger setup in hopes of avoiding the credit card scams which are apparently associated with some of the smaller outlets.  Besides I know from experience that my debit card works at that particular station (though my credit card does not bcause I am unable to provide a Zip code associated with the Canadian credit card).  Doesn't matter in any event, just as happy to use the debit card because we use so little gas once we're here (quite unlike the story at home when I add gas to the tank almost every day).

My subsequent destination was Volusia Mall.  I wanted to buy another pair of shorts, ones which were one size smaller than I currently wear.  Sears didn't have what I was looking for (though astonishingly they carried a knock-off look-alike called something like Polo Association (with a patent disclaimer that it was not connected with Ralph Lauren Polo).  Though the knock-off was not bad I avoided the temptation because the price was almost 50% less which made me wary.  The sizing might also have been unreliable whereas I am familiar with Lauren's merchandise.

I eventually found what I was looking for at Dillard's, along with a belt which like the shorts was almost identical to what I already have, but somewhat shorter.  I resisted getting more than one of each because I'm hopeful that my downsizing will continue over the next six months.

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