Travel Dude looked online and found that The Original Pancake House serves gluten-free pancakes! He drove me 30 minutes away to try them. They gave me six (WAY too many), and only AFTERWARD told me I could order a half-order. They were ok. Travel Dude (who's finicky and usually hates gluten-free food) tried them and said he'd eat them himself. It was cool that there didn't have to be much fuss or weirdness when I ordered and I got to eat something fairly tasty. The lingonberries were prett
Aloha! I'm back on the blog and back home. I went to Jamaica in Jan. and again in Feb. and just returned from 11 days on Kauai! I also went to the Super Bowl. I've been having tons of fun, as well as tons of stress, and not much gluten!
Let's get you up-to-date:
I flew to San Antonio over Turkey Day 2008 and the city was kindof a letdown. The RiverWalk seemed to be the only draw and I wasn't too impressed. I was shocked that my best friend (I hate the acronym bff) whom I like to call M
I believe my blog has been censored, without notification or an opportunity to edit it. I wrote a really fun entry a few weeks ago, but *POOF*... Therefore, I've been deliberating where to move my blog. I enjoyed being here, due to the specialized viewing population, but I can't deal with censorship.
I have lotsa juicy stuff, too--I went to a gluten free restaurant, no gluten allowed in there! I had awesome recipes from Thanksgiving, and I had new products I've tried, but I don't want t
It began at 7:30 PM and ended at 7:30 AM. I kinda thought I'd picked the lesser of two evils by opting to see my friend's husband's band play for Halloween, and not going to the party where I knew my ex-boyfriend from 2 years ago would be. You decide:
I had a blast in my St. Pauli Girl costume, dancing (extra fun to shake my mini crinoline-clad booty) with the wives of the band dudes, doing raspberry kamikaze shots, and complimenting people's costumes. It was fun when dudes would shout,
Had fun at the celiac support meeting. You can pretend you went- a virtual meeting- here:
One lady had amazing pumpkin bread (light and moist and fluffy and SOFT) that she made out of her Vitamix (some fancy blender) recipe book that she modified for gluten free. Said it was easy. She traded me her leftover cake for my leftover peanut butter cookies from Whole Foods A college girl told us about some cookie ice cream from Good Karma she loves-it's soy based? Another one said she's had great
Thanks again to:*drum roll* HEREDITY! *applause* Thanks to my genes, I-- (like my mom this time ((celiac's from dad)))-- needed a gum graft. Mom said it was awful pain and not to do it. Hers fell off anyway.
So I told the guy he had one shot to make it work. TALK ABOUT DISGUSTING! Embarrassingly enough, I think I had my first panic attack during this one-hour procedure. Growing up without insurance (below the poverty line), I needed lotsa dental work once I grew up and got insurance. So, t
Gluten-Free Me...
...gives Mucho Kudos to Chex Cereal (recently gone gluten free) for listing an informational blurb on the side of its box now that explains celiac disease as a "multi-symptom autoimmune disorder...estimated 1 in 133 Americans suffer from...", and it goes on to list a celiac website and has the logo for the Celiac Disease Foundation.
...got to participate in a luncheon at work! It was "build a salad". I can't say I liked it that much. I like expensive stuff, like spinach, r
I broke down and paid $30ish for the downloadable gluten free food list. Last winter I got a used palm pilot online for $30ish, so I could try out this program and see how much easier my gluten free life could be. So, now that I finally did it and have been using it for a month or two, I'll tell you how it is.
It's not too great. It was quick and easy to download. The palm is easy to use. It lists restaurant foods, too. The foods listed show whether they have gluten or not, how they were
I rode the Silly Yak and avoided a gluten attack. As I suspected and expected, my midwest jaunt to spend quality time with my grandma (and mother and aunt- all of us traveled from both coasts and gathered in one tiny house with my grandma's mentally disabled brother- in support of my grandma's terminal diagnosis with cancer) did turn out to be ultra celiac-friendly. The marvelous trip to Bunky's Pizza (Madison, WI, area) where I indulged in fabulous gluten-free pizza-I chose shrimp and swapped
Tried the prairie bread everyone loves, and I'd give it 3 stars out of five. The texture and flavor are not as good as the frozen white Kinnickinnick (Kinn)breads I eat. (I have found out how to prepare the Kinn bread just the way I like it. I either defrost it in the microwave or fry it in the pan.) Anyway, the prairie bread earned three stars because it is edible and the seeds make it seem healthy in some way. I can only eat one slice- no sandwich.
I got glutened the first night at my
I got glutened! I had some food sitting on the table in the teacher's lounge next to my purse -covered- and I quickly went into the copy room to make some copies. When I came back, there was a woman with her hands in my food! She was eating my food! I said, get outta there! Everyone laughed.
And I got glutened. I guess I shouldn't have stepped away. But, it's a busy time of year.
I had back and leg pain within the hour but the bathroom bonanza didn't begin until the morning. That'
So the Ranger struck out. (crowd jeers.) For date three, I agreed to go to his house to watch a DVD. After inviting me, he warned me that women never return for another date after coming over. (Music: DUN-dun- DUNNNNN!) He said it's because he has no furniture, and they must be materialistic women. (mental red flag raises in my mind here) I responded by saying that I have male friends and brothers, so I realize what bachelor pads can be like.
OMG. No furniture. OK. But he neglected to
Ok, I must confess that before I "left" the ex unbeknowingst to him as he slept, before gathering up my gluten free food, I spied his laundry I'd folded sitting there. I took his favorite (You know how guys get really attached to things) t-shirt from his trip to Italy and I took a Sharpie and wrote something on the back (he is always in a hurry getting dressed and never looks in the mirror, and probably won't notice). It says something about him being...a liar and stuff. Couldn't resist. Coo
Celiacs qualify for the 125 plan at work where you pretax spending! I get to pretax the DIFFERENCE of cost in gluten free items and regular gluteny items of similar food types. I'm about to sign up for it. I have to get a letter from my doctor to qualify me. The woman also told me I have to get a copy of a price list from a grocery store to show comparable gluten versions of the stuff I buy. BOY does that sound FUN!! Well, at least I used the 125 plan a couple years ago for my few but expe
My not-so-personal, so-called Life...Well, things the boyfriend was saying hadn't been adding up. He began staying up weird hours. He had no trouble spontaneously getting off work to go on trips with me. His responses to "how was your day" didn't make sense. So, I decided to call his work and found out he was no longer employed there. And, of course, he hadn't told me.
So, my mysterious scorpio traits kicked in, and I kept this secret. I sat beside him as he'd call his "sarge" and call of
I've been baking and heating and knoshing and eating:
365 Pancake and Waffle Mix- Good, not spectacular
Whole Foods Market Frozen baguettes- Amazing. A new favorite.
365 Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix- yuck
Kinnickinnick White Cake Mix- yuckity yuck-o; had to toss it- "egg-y"flavor-eww!
Trader Joe's Brownie mix (in brown bag)- good, but I reacted (and no, I didn't have milk with them)
Kinnickinnick Chocolate Donuts (frozen)- ok, but I reacted (and no, I didn't have milk or other ?able items
The Whole Foods Market finally opened (about a 40 minute drive...we do minutes, not miles over here)!!
AND I TRIED AND LOVE SO MUCH OF THEIR FOODS ALREADY!
I had read and heard about lots of it from people who had been to them. I was so excited to go and my expectations were exceeded.
I have not tried everything yet. It's been a little over a week.
Here are the things I tried and LOVED:
FROZEN meals (heat & serve):
3 Cheese Mac & Cheese
Ian's french bread pizza
Las Vegas was a blast! Planet Hollywood Hotel (across from Bellagio, formerly Aladdin) was really modern, energetic, and cool! I only picked it because it was on a deal website and had good user reviews. We hated the Mandalay Bay the last time we stayed there in October (dirty room at checkin-like ppl had just left-had to get a new one-which almost made us late to Toni Braxton, broken elevators, rude dealers at tables, etc.)
We were almost robbed (advantage of dating a detective)! We were d
Revelation: I know why it takes 3 years to get a hang of the gluten-free diet-- Because it takes about that long to forget how real bread tastes! And when you've been NOT eating the real thing for two years, like me, you DO forget what the real thing tastes like. And THAT makes the fake versions much more palatable!
Now the newbies at the celiac support group meeting will look at ME like I have three eyeballs when I join the "old, wise ones" and proclaim, "it tastes just like the real thing
gluten-free foods I've tried lately:
GlutenFreeda's frozen cookies- forgot the name of the flavor- something w/pb & ch chips- Ok, but 140 cal/ea. and I think they taste better frozen, just the dough, which is probably how I'll eat the rest of them.
Ian's frozen fish sticks- excellent! Addictive! Very crunchy!
Ian's frozen turkey corn dog bites- very good
Large gluten-free pasta shells- haven't tried them yet. I despise the gray-looking rice pasta for the mushiness and the b
We're at the hotel bar area chatting with fellow vacationers, when my bf whispers to me, "This lady thinks I'm a pro-athlete." This is typical, so I wondered why he looked so flustered. I say, "Did you tell her you're not?" He says, "Yes, but she won't take no for an answer. She thinks I'm trying to be private."
fyi, the Detective in 6'3" and slim with broad shoulders, and often gets "noticed" by onlookers (at airport or concerts, usually) as a potential professional athlete-someone they
We discovered a new favorite song on our Cozumel island adventure, "Besa Me Mucho". We heard it at the musical show at our all-inclusive resort-- while the performers were singing, much to my surprise, mi novio (bf) started to sing along (he remembered the song from his CA Boys Choir Days -where he sang alongside Lenny Kravitz). My knees were like butter.... So at dinners in the downtown (outdoor dining) we paid the walk-up musicians to serenade us throughout the trip...great memory. We were
I've been venturing out to dine a lot lately, eluding the Gluten Fiend and his cohorts, the Cross Contamination Crew (knock on wood). Devoured tantalizing ribs at Tony Roma's (all sauces & meats are gluten free) and corn on cob and potato.
At Chili's (I often go there and eat ribs with no ill effects), I discovered a little trick. If I'm going somewhere afterward (the play, Atlanta-3 of 4 stars, I'd say+we saw the guy from HEROES that wrote the play there-my bf watches the show-it's too f
Making a list of what to cook, eat, and do for my 3 weeks off work:
Order from Celiac Specialties: especially Dr. Schar's crackers and apple streudel and donuts.
Buy Woodchuck Cider, Ian's Chicken Nuggets, Cravings Place Pancake mix
Go to Whole Foods (far away)
Find a Brazilian Restaurant
Try to make Chile Relleno
Make poppyseed coleslaw again
Make pie with gluten-free graham cracker crumb crust
Make bananas foster again
Try to get rid of my lactose intolerance like
It's been 2 years since this gluten free segment of my life story has commenced. I think I can self-diagnose that I am over the stages of grief over the loss of my normal, carefree lifestyle. I have reached acceptance. The three year period I've read about that it takes to become thoroughly accustomed to the diet/lifestyle, seems to be correct. I still have mishaps and I still get annoyed with it. But next year (end of year 3), I think I will feel a much firmer grip on it. Much love to the
