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Feeding Time

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My tubby girl Kazu

My tubby girl Kazu

Over the past year, my European Burmese cat Kazu has put on considerable weight, and is now rather tubby at 11.5 pounds when she really should be 9.5 pounds. Since I have never had an overweight cat before, and also since my other two cats are rather svelte, I am wracking my brain trying to figure out a solution which would get Kazu to drop weight. When I took Kazu to the vet to investigate her sudden weight gain, the vet told me that all I could really do was to address her chronic constipation via dietary fiber and glycerin suppositories. When I tried feeding Kazu wet food with fiber mixed in, she refused it, but I wasn’t surprised since she isn’t a fan of canned food. On the one occasion in which I decided to try a suppository on her, neither she nor I were happy about the experience, and though I think the treatment helped to move things along a bit that day, I am not convinced that the mild boost in bathroom activity warranted me torturing my poor cat on a regular basis.

I feed my cats a low calorie, high protein, grain-free, dry formula to which they have free range all day. This is partially because I have always done that with the cats I have had since 1986, and because I am always so freakishly busy that I am gone for the entire day and unable to accommodate scheduled feedings. Kazu’s breeder suggested that I consider a timed feeder, but that wouldn’t work in our household because my American Burmese boy Tenshi is so food-motivated that he would chomp down all the food in the feeder, leaving none for the other two cats to eat.

I think at this point, I will try to add fiber by another means, and will measure out food so that about 1/3 cup of dry food is allotted per cat per day. I will have to portion the food out in the morning before I leave and just keep an eye on how much Kazu is actually consuming, though I know she isn’t a big eater. In addition, I have been trying to get Kazu to exercise more, even though she is relatively active. All three of my cats play “grab-ass” (my favorite terminology for the rough-housing they all do) on most days, and Kazu loves playing fetch with socks and toys, so I will try to encourage as much play as I can when I am home. It isn’t exactly easy to put a six year old cat on an exercise plan, but if I can do it for humans, I am certainly up for the challenge with a feline!

Walt Disney’s Story Land

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Disney Story Land

On my sixth birthday, my mom gave me a copy of Walt Disney’s Story Land which quickly became one of my most beloved books. Story Land is a classic collection of Disney stories which was published by Golden Press from 1962-1999, and is now out of print. I still have my copy, and am proud to say that it is in excellent condition. There are 55 stories in this book, most of which are original Disney stories, but I always knew that Ugly Duckling was a Hans Christian Anderson story, and that Disney merely wrote an adaptation of the original Anderson tale.

Here are the stories which are found in the original version of Walt Disney’s Story Land:

Bambi
Hiawatha
Donald Duck, Private Eye
Toy Sailboat
Bongo
Pedro
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Once Upon a Wintertime
Chip n’ Dale at the Zoo
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Perri
The Grasshopper and the Ants
The Adventures of Mr. Toad
The Orphan Kittens
Pilgrim’s Party
Ben and Me
Goliath II
The Lonely Little Colt
Dumbo of the Circus
Paul Revere
Alice in Wonderland Meets the White Rabbit
Donald Duck, Prize Driver
Goofy, Movie Star
Babes in Toyland
Forest Friends (based on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)
The Flying Mouse
Through the Picture Frame
The Runaway Lamb (an excerpt from So Dear to My Heart)
Grandpa Bunny (an excerpt from Funny Little Bunnies)
The Ugly Duckling
Uncle Remus/De Tar Baby
Elmer Elephant
Lady and the Tramp
Scamp
Donald the Explorer (based on Polar Trappers)
Mrs. Cackle’s Corn (based on The Wise Little Hen)
Mickey Mouse and Pluto Pup
Pigs Is Pigs
Peter Pan
Cinderella
Mickey Mouse Goes Christmas Shopping
Pluto Pup Goes to Sea
Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier
Darby O’Gill
The Old Mill
Johnny Appleseed
The Grand Canyon
Beaver and His Brothers
Peter and the Wolf
Brave Little Tailor
101 Dalmatians
Sleeping Beauty
Three Little Pigs
The Country Cousin
Pinocchio

Does anyone remember this book?

When You Need To Get Away

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california

I am the kind of person who burns the candle at both ends, not necessarily because I like to constantly feel like I am being run ragged, but because I always have an insanely busy schedule which has me switching gears constantly throughout each day. My usual response to the question, “What did you do last weekend?” is that I worked. I am ALWAYS working on something, and there is always something to do in my hectic life.

There is a bit which comic John Mulaney performs which captures the feeling which I feel whenever I get the rare chance to actually relax on a weekend. Here’s his bit:

Kids always want to do stuff, kids get angry. They go, “awww, we didn’t do anything all day!”
You ever ask an adult what they did over the weekend and they say they didn’t do anything, their faces light up. It’s like, “What did you do this weekend?” Ï, uh, (big smile across one’s face) I did nothing. I did nothing at all! Did we do anything? No, we didn’t do anything!”

I am definitely feeling the urge to get away so I can get a break from the constant movement which defines my daily life. I firmly believe that everyone should take vacations and go on weekend getaways every now and then to recharge the spirit and relax the body and mind. Though I won’t be able to take any big trips this year, I know that a weekend getaway needs to occur soon so that I can preserve my sanity! The telltale signs of burnout are showing, such as lack of concentration, irritability, and fatigue. The nice thing about living in southern California is that there are so many options available for weekend getaways, so I will make sure to plan something very soon.

I Dig Trip Hop

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For the past few weeks I have really gotten back into trip hop. Trip hop is a sensual blend of electronica and down-tempo hip-hop, urban and ethereal, street and ambience, very smooth and trancy, which is why it is often referred to as “chill-out music”. Trip hop is known as “Bristol Sound” s a result of its origins in Bristol, England.

Popular trip hop groups which I would consider my favorites are: Portishead, Phantogram, Massive Attack, DJ Shadow, Lamb, Morcheeba, Tricky, Propellerheads, Olive, and the Sneaker Pimps. One of the things I love about this style of music is that it is great music for me to write to, and there is rarely a song I dislike.

Here is a sample of a song from Portishead, which is my number one favorite trip hop band:

Portishead “Numb”

I am obsessed with this song from Phantogram right now:

This is great music!

Not Holding My Breath For You!

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unreliable people

When I was younger, I would go out of my way to accommodate other people’s requests, and always believed them when they promised to follow up with me. Then, when no follow up call came, I would always blame myself, as if I had any control over another human being. Nowadays, I automatically assume that nothing is set in stone until the appointment is booked and the person shows up, the deposit is paid (if a business transaction is to take place), the contract is signed, etc. I certainly have learned my lesson over the years and would rather have no expectations and then be pleasantly surprised when someone with integrity whose word is reliable comes through.

The no-expectations attitude which I have adopted has definitely helped me deal with people in the fitness and entertainment industries, both of which seem to attract some of the flakiest people on the planet. The more grandiose the ideas and promises made by someone I am just meeting for the first time, the more I suspect that their words are simply verbal diarrhea, so I just tune them out.

I now de-prioritize all individuals who fail to call when they are supposed to, who fail to respond to reasonable and friendly follow-up requests, or who offer some bullshit excuse about how things are still “in the works” and how my patience would be appreciated. I have done business with too many people who are complete flakes, and I am DONE. It isn’t MY job to follow up with them, and I am sick of the aggravation. My message to all of them is to put on grown-up pants and show some respect and some initiative!

In keeping with having to deal with unreliable and unprofessional people, I refuse to suggest ideas or offer information without a written contract in place. I also will not provide a service unless it is paid for at the time of services rendered. And no, I do not accept checks.

What frustrates me is that I still find myself wondering what it is that I did to cause this person to ignore me, yet I know how unhealthy such notions are. I can’t take it personally. The best thing to do is to brush the negative experience aside and move on.

I Just Had To Get A New Pillow

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Pillow

The combination of a poorly cooled townhouse (the result of an untimely coil leak in the central air conditioning), night sweats, cats who think it’s cool to use me as a natural radiator, aches and pains in my hips, legs, shoulders, forearms and hands, and a recurrent neck strain have all robbed me of sleep almost every night this summer. With the exception of the cat issue, I was determined to find solutions to all of the sleep robbing elements in my life.

The central air conditioning is finally going to be replaced within the next week (HALLELUJAH!), the night sweats have abated somewhat (due to better hormonal balance in my perimenopausal body), and the aches and pains have been better as a result of fantastic chiropractic work by Dr. Ryan Pendon and Dr. Ryan Chapman from Urban Med. I realized that the neck strain was aggravated by pillows which did a horrible job of supporting my noggin, so I figured I could buy new ones.

Since I always buy new pillows for my bed every year in the autumn months, and wasn’t quite due for a new set, I hesitated on making a purchase. But the pillows I had been sleeping on since November were no longer fluffable, and at night, my head would sink right onto the mattress. I could literally feel the mattress through the pillows! I will admit that I am highly sensitive to tactile changes, just like the princess who could feel the pea through 20 mattresses. So I toughed it out and figured that I would just somehow get used to having deflated pillows. Then I got one of those mailers from Bed, Bath and Beyond, with a 20% off coupon on any one item. After thinking about it for a week, I decided to buy one pillow at a 20% discount.

I ended up with an Isotonic® Indulgence™ Side Sleeper Pillow, originally priced at $59 but which I paid $47 and some change for after using my coupon. This pillow is for side sleepers, but isn’t as firm as some of the other side sleeper pillows I found. Since I always start out my night on my back, I can’t deal with a very firm pillow because it wrenches my neck into an uncomfortable flexed position. The perfect pillow has to be a perfect balance of support and softness, with some loft, but soft enough that it doesn’t feel like my head is resting on a Bosu ball. So far (it has been a couple of nights since I started using this pillow to sleep on), this pillow is doing the trick for me.

Now I only have to deal with one, or actually, THREE issues which interrupt my slumber. The cats rule the roost in our house and have free access to my room, which means that if they want to wrap their perspiration-inducing, furry bodies around me in the middle of the night, I am not exactly going to do anything to prevent them from doing so. However, it is a small price to pay for their constant and unconditional love!

Glutagest

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This supplement is truly amazing! It contains a probiotic which breaks down gluten, thus allowing you to consume gluten-containing foods. I decided to give this supplement the ultimate test with a pepperoni pizza and wine cheat meal, and for the first time ever, I had no digestive issues whatsoever. I got none of the abdominal pain or bloating I always get after a meal like that, nor was I tortured by excessive bathroom sessions the next day. This supplement is excellent and enables me to eat some of my favorite foods which I had been avoiding for the last six months since discovering that I had a severe gluten intolerance.

You can order directly from the website too: http://glutagest.com/products/glutagest

A Note To Pro Card Chasers

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I had to step on the national stage fourteen times before I won my IFBB Pro Card, so I know first hand how frustrating it can be to ALMOST get that Pro Card, and how irresistible the Pro Card hunt can be. This post is for all of you who are chasing down that Pro Card, and is meant to remind you of what you represent and what you have accomplished.

You are AMAZING. You have already won in the eyes of your co-workers, spouse, children, friends, fans, etc. There is no need to feel validated by the contest judges. Just because you hit the stage and you aren’t selected for the glittering top prize does NOT mean you have failed. You are WOW. You are among the best bodybuilders in the world, and are just stuck in that bottleneck with other elite athletes who are vying for the top rung. So don’t take your placing personally. It really ISN’T about the Pro Card.
You already ARE a champion!

I Don’t Wear Foundation

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This selfie was taken last week with no filters of any kind.

I absolutely detest the feeling of foundation. Even the lightest formula makes my skin feel like it is being suffocated. The same goes for tinted moisturizers, which to me look just as much like a mask as foundations do. It’s not that I don’t appreciate the lovely airbrush effect which foundations can create for the complexion, but in my day to day life, I want my skin to breathe without being weighed down by an extra layer of liquid (yes, I do know about powder foundations, and I don’t like those either). My daily skin makeup routine consists of me using a touch of concealer on two little red areas near the bridge of my nose and then applying some loose translucent power all over my skin to keep my skin from looking shiny. A recent chemical peel which I did made me love my skin even more, because it removed the majority of sun damage I had accumulated over the last couple of years. The results were so dramatic that I had to switch to a lighter concealer after using one particular shade for over ten years.

My mom used to tell me that once I got to a certain age, maybe 30, that I would be forced to wear foundation because I would have blotchy, uneven skin tones. Well, I just turned 49 a couple of weeks ago, and the photo you see here was taken last week. So much for what my mom surmised about the appearance of my skin in later years!

I will wear foundation for photo shoots, video and film shoots, and for fitness and bodybuilding events, but literally the FIRST thing I do when I get home from an event is to wash all my makeup off! I have noticed that I have the kind of face that shows makeup well, and that the smallest amount of makeup can impart a very finished look on me, which always surprises me. Thing is, I don’t want to look made up all the time. I like the natural look of clean skin and just a touch of color on the lips and cheeks.

If you are a woman who would love to go without foundation, but haven’t been blessed by the good skin gods, you might want to consider treatments which can help with the texture and tone of your skin. Chemical peels can rejuvenate and tighten the skin, while removing accumulated sun damage and hormonal brown spots, often with rather dramatic results. My favorite peel is the Perfect Derma Peel (http://www.theperfectdermapeel.com/) which contains Glutathione, Kojic Acid, TCA, Retinoic Acid, Phenol, Salicylic Acid, and Vitamin C. For those of you in the Los Angeles area who are interested in getting this peel, please refer to my medical website: http://www.drstaceynaito.com/#!chemical-peels/comt