Rollercoaster Ride

Hey guys,

So, to put it nicely, this week has been a bit difficult for me. You see, I thrive when I am busy. I like going from one activity to another, not thinking about what else is going on in my life, just concentrating on what I have to do next. And this week, because of my profession's national conference, we didn't have class. Which meant A LOT of down time. Which meant A LOT of thinking about back home. Which made me sad.

And then, amidst the sad times, I would find something to make me happy. Often, it was thoughts about how excited I am to move back home... So, I'd be really happy for a few hours, even a day, and then crash and have to pull myself out of the sadness again. Its not quite bipolar level, but it really was wreaking havoc on my emotions this week. Like a rollercoaster.

Today's sermon in church was about Job. God LET Satan tempt Job and take everything away from him, because God knew Job was strong enough to take it. And Job, being the awesome guy he was, continued to praise God through all the hard times. And that's what I kind of tried to work towards this week. Finding the positives and thanking God for them, rather than dwelling on the negatives and how much I hate being away from home.

So, these next few weeks will hopefully pull me out of this funk. My schedule really picks back up next week, and I have more classes, and more fun things to do (like my college roommate visiting me, going to a few ECHL hockey games, and eventually the boy visiting for Valentine's Day!). And the busier I am, the less I will think about what I'm missing at home.

One positive about this week was I had some time to cook a few things. One of them was homemade tzaziki sauce. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this awesomeness, its a yogurt/sour cream sauce that can go on meat, or with pita bread, or with carrots, etc. Its cucumbery, dilly, and garlicky... and delicious. I found a recipe on Kalyn's Kitchen Blog and will repost it how I made it here!

World's Best Tzaziki Sauce! From Kalyn's Kitchen Blog

Ingredients:
3 cups Greek Yogurt
juice of one lemon (about 3 T)
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 medium cucumbers, seeded and diced
about 1 T kosher salt for salting cucumbers
1 T finely chopped fresh dill
Salt and Pepper to taste

Place the cucumbers in a colander and sprinkle salt on them. Let them sit for at least 30 minutes (I let mine sit for 45) so the water can draw the salt out of the cucumbers (Wow, science!). Then, a step that I didn't do but was recommended to me, is to press the cucumbers between a few sheets of paper towels to draw even more water out of them. Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender, and combine.

It should last in the fridge for a few days! I ate it tonight on a chicken burger that I put in a pita with some lettuce, tomato, and feta, and it was AMAZING. Will definitely be making it again, and using ground chicken breast more often (super healthy!)

Here's to a better week... much happier, and continuing to be healthy :)

-Austin

Current weight: 167.2
Weight loss since January 14 (the start of this new effort): 6 lbs