Ducky Does Breakfast

I had RNY gastric bypass surgery on March 5th, 2008. I have been trying a lot of new food products and a new favorite is Kashi Go Lean. I can only eat about 2 tablespoons of it right now but it is very high in both fiber and protein. I like to mix it into my yogurt but I also look forward to having it with my Wegmans Organic Soymilk.

It is available at Amazon subscribe and save for $3.33 a box but you get 6 boxes at a time and free shipping.

I also have to plug the subscribe and save program. I signed up to get my vitamin supplements this way and they will automatically send them to my house every 6 months. I get my iron and B12 this way. You have to compare amazon's prices with your local stores but so far I have found Amazon usually wins out as long as your purchase qualifys for free shipping.

Ingredients: Soy Protein, Soy Grits, Corn Bran, Corn, Evaporated Cane Juice, Honey, Whole Oats, Long Grain Brown Rice, Whole Rye, Whole Hard Red Winter Wheat, Whole Triticale, Whole Buckwheat, Whole Barley, Wheat Bran, Oat Bran, Whey, Sesame Seeds, Salt


Serving size: 1 cup
Calories: 140
Calories from Fat: 10
Amount Per Serving and/or % Daily Value*
Total Fat: 1g (2%)
Saturated Fat: 0g (0%)
Trans Fat: 0g
Cholesterol: 0mg (0%)
Sodium: 85mg (4%)
Potassium: 480mg (14%)
Total Carbohydrate: 30g (10%)
Dietary Fiber: 10g (40%)
Soluble Fiber: 1g
Insoluble Fiber: 9g
Sugars: 6g
Protein: 13g (20%)
Amount Per Serving and/or % Daily Value*
Vitamin A: 0%
Vitamin C: 0%
Calcium: 6%
Iron: 10%
Phosphorus: 10%
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower based on your calorie needs.

Kashi at amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Kashi-GOLEAN-Cereal-14-1-Ounce-Boxes/dp/B000FNJOO0/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&s=grocery&qid=1208097339&sr=1-18

Emerging from Hibernation

I am getting ready to stretch my wings and fly...except I just learned that when I fell last month I fractured my ankle. So I have a big boot thing on my leg for a little while. This means I have to hold off on those adventurous geocaches.

The quick rundown of what geocaching is--People hide small to medium sized containers outside and locations run from urban to rural to downright wilderness. In the container is a log book for signing in when you find the cache and sometimes some small trinkets (my favorite is when I find rubber duckies). The person who hides the cache takes the gps coordinates of the location and posts them online. Then suckers like me set out to find them.

What I love about geocaching is that its great exercise, cheap as long as you don't enter the "gotta have the newest/best/fanciest gps" race. It takes you to places you never knew existed but are only a drive around the corner, and you meet really great friends.

The GPS systems I have tried and liked:
Garmin Etrex Legend
This is my little easy to use unit. It was so simple to use that I didn't read the manual. It doesn't pick up satellites inside or in deep gulleys. It has an electronic compass so you have to keep moving for navigation accuracy but if you are just getting into the sport and aren't sure if its your thing this is a good starter model. I think its rugged and has held up to some beating but I know of 2 people who dropped theirs in water and it was a little less than normal after than even tough it is water resistant and submersible in something approximating 5ft of water for 30 minutes (I would have to check the manual to confirm the exact limits). I would go ahead and get the case for it too.
http://www.pcnation.com/web/details.asp?item=6G0230&GEN0=Y

Garmin Nuvi 350
This is more of a navigation system and this little puppy stays in the car. The only thing I think can be improved is sound quality. It has an mp3 player but the sound quality is poor enough that I would prefer to listen to the radio. Others may disagree but this is not an essential piece to be able to geocache BUT if you try it you will be hooked (fair warning).
http://www.pcnation.com/web/details.asp?item=6G0230&GEN0=Y

The holiest of holy GPS units prayed to by many is...

Garmin (see a trend here? I swear their are other manufacturers we just like garmin)
GPSMap 60 csx
This little crack rock will get satellites inside a building and anywhere outside. No dense forest, rock walls, or tall buildings will thwart its efforts to bring you clear reception. I thinks its more confusing to use but hey the addicts get used to it. Don't borrow one unless you are willing to buy one that night. This gps doesn't have a good case. Some prefer just to have it naked with screen protectors because the case covers up buttons and ports. If you are going to get an accessory get the car mount.
http://www.pcnation.com/web/details.asp?item=6G0230&GEN0=Y

And a note on PC Nation: Of course always shop around but they have always had the best prices when I look. Shipping is fast and I have been happy with them and I was referred to them from a friend who is also always happy.

The King of Kong

I just happened to watch The King of Kong: A fistfull of quarters. It was on Netflix instant watch in the top 50 movies. I LOVED IT! I feel like such a gaming nerd but it was a great movie. It is a documentary about the quest for the world championship title in arcade Donkey Kong (yeah I just lost you there right?). If you watch it you will probably end up loving Steve Wiebe and hating Billy Mitchell at least I hope so.

Italian Eatery

Date night! I just celebrated a birthday on March 8th. I received a coupon in the mail for a free dinner entree from Bazil http://www.bazilrestaurant.com/ or Mario's http://www.mariosviaabruzzi.com/. The coupon is good for up to $11.00 at Bazils or $16.00 at Marios. (Which is funny because there were no entrees that I saw on the menu that were under $11.00)

I have been to both these restaurants before and we picked Bazil because Mario's is a bit more spendy. They both have online menu's. I was happy that Bazil's had a section on their menu for special diets (Low Carb/Vegetarian/Weight Watchers with nutritional info/Gluten Free). The dinner entrees come with your choice of soup or salad. They have unlimited salad and breadsticks like the OG. I got broiled haddock which comes with coleslaw and steak fries and I chose the minestrone soup. My date ordered Lasagna off the Weight Watchers menu and chose the salad. They very nicely brought the dressing on the side which has been a hassle before at the previously mentioned OG. Minestrone soup was very delicious stocked full of vegetables and pasta. Vegetarians beware that the minestrone has a meat based broth. I had a lot of questions about meal prep and side dishes and the server was very patient and provided good information. The food came quickly, it was pipping hot, and presentation was nice. My date ate my steak fries and reported that they were very delicious. I enjoyed the haddock it was fresh tasting and perfectly done. Our server was very quick on refills and she promptly brought requested items.

Of course, there is always things that pluck my tail feathers. The restaurant is loud. I think it just has poor acoustics. We heard all about a birthday girl about 5 tables away who was hitting the vino. I was amazed that the staff continued to serve her alcohol despite her very obvious inebriation. She got up announced to the table (well the whole restaurant really) that she was going to use the restroom. When she didn't come back her friends started looking for her. She went and drove herself home, obviously very drunk. I have no tolerance for drunk driving so I was disappointed in her and the staff for continuing to serve her alcohol despite her very obvious inebriation.

Overall I give this 3 and a half enthusiastic quacks.

Mani/Pedi's with momma duck

My mom took me out today for my Easter gift and we both got Manicures and Pedicures. We went to Maiden Nails in Webster, NY. Its address is 950 Ridge Road but its in the K-Mart/BJ's plaza between the two. We had appointments at 12:30 but my pedi didn't start until almost 2:00. The point was to spend time with momma duck but we got off schedule and she was getting her mani when my pedi finally started. My pedi was so rushed that we ended at the same time even though hers started 45 minutes before mine. The tech painted a very obvious fuzzy into my nail that I did't see until I got home. Thats what I get for flying out of there without inspecting the goods. I give this experience only two quacks. The staff is nice and the pedi-spas are really comfy with built-in back massagers. They really seem to cater more to the arcrylic nail crowd so your mileage may vary. As always, feel free to give a shout out to the duck pond!

Intro Post

Hello Ducklings:

This is my blog for reviews. There is nothing off limit for me to review as I have lots of opinions. I live near Rochester, New York so most of my destination reviews will be in this area but as my world expands outward my reviews may too. So far my plan is to go backwards a bit before I go forwards.

3/11/08

I went to Michael's in Henrietta, NY. http://www.michaels.com/art/online/home. Any crafter already knows what this store is. I frequent a lot of the craft superstores because I enjoy fiber, paper, textiles, and mixed media artwork and there is a little something of everything in these stores. There are very few sections in these stores I don't visit (it's mostly the cheesy wedding section I steer clear of). They aren't the best for very specific or more advanced craft/art needs (I'm looking for chipboard birds). But they are good for basic, low cost supplies.

I had no coupons but everything I bought was on clearance. I enjoy stalking the store for hidden clearance dispersed among the aisles and then I hit the aisle dedicated to clearance items. My big purchase was 20 skeins of Bernat Brella yarn in a variety of neutral brown tones. (I plan to make my mother-in-law a shawl for her birthday). The yarns were marked clearance $1.50 but they rang up for a dollar!

What to know before you go:
Don't come here without a coupon. Michael's does not offer online coupons and to my knowledge they don't do private mailings. You can get Michael's coupons in the Sunday paper quite often. Michael's also accepts competitors (Joann's, A.C. Moore) PRINT coupons. They will not take computer or register coupons. Coupons are only good for regular priced items.

Beware of items labeled "clearance" and check the price. The clearance discount may only be a dollar off. Which is fine if the item was originally 2 dollars but if it was $19.99 it would have been better to use a coupon.

What Ducky didn't like:

I recently had surgery and I can't bend over all the way to the floor. Of course I knocked down 2 coloring books in the main aisle. I explained to a nearby associate that I couldn't bend over but I didn't want to leave the coloring books lying there. She said nothing at all to me and without even looking at me picked them up and went back to what she was doing. It all felt a bit hostile.

Feel free to share with me, I love to hear about other great deals that people find in stores. I also enjoy hearing about projects where craft items cross genres.