Hello, Nicole

Here in southern West Virginia, Nicole is steadily dumping rain and more rain on our parade (I'm not complaining, we really need the rain). Thankfully we're west of the winds which are whipping through the mid-Atlantic. It looks like today will be the soaker we've been wishing for during our recent period of extreme dryness.

Which is unfortunate, really, because I'd like to take another walk outdoors today. Yes, you read that correctly, I said another walk. In the past week I've walked three days: a five-miler, a one-miler (cut short by a hypoglycemic attack) and a three-miler.

I have it in my mind to try to walk at least three miles a day, but that plan might have to begin tomorrow. And what's better than starting A Plan on the first of the month? Who knows, though … there might be a break in the action later this afternoon. I'll just have to be flexible about the timing.

We had a simple but delicious dinner last night, a black bean soup with rice, tomatoes and a little bit of sausage. I'm keeping the calorie count below 1200 and not feeling hungry – so far, so good.

My energy level seems to be bouncing back. I'm still going to bed (and waking up) early, early, but I'm not napping during the day and I have the reserves to do most of what needs to be done around here. I'm making pizza for dinner tonight, which is a pretty labor-intensive morning project (I make the dough and the mozzarella from scratch). Last month that wouldn't have seemed like much work at all. Thinking about it now, though, I might – if it's still raining – take that nap.