Happy National Grammar Day, National Salt Awareness Day, and World Obesity Day
DAY 4, MARCH 4, 2024
Good Morning To All!
First, here’s something to laugh about.😄
The day before yesterday, I had beautiful sunshine. Yesterday too. My co-host of the RNH Show (Raters Not Haters Show) has been visiting my blog posts during the challenge, and I wrote about how sunny the day had been. He commented on my blog post that I must have stolen his sunshine because he had nothing but clouds. I’m laughing because I try to steal all the sunshine I can get. 😂
So, now to my article for today.
I am enjoying the second year of the RRBC Challenge because they have intermingled it with prompts we can write on. Today, I am very interested in the three topics above because I had to incorporate them into my lifestyle.
As a writer, I must use good Grammar in my writing and speaking. The first thing people look at when reading a book is Grammar; believe me, even the poorest person in Grammar can tell when you aren’t grammatically correct. Now that is only my opinion.
I have to admit that my weakness in writing is my Grammar. Therefore, I don’t let any story, fiction or non-fiction, except for this challenge, go out of my office without sending it to my editor. I am picky about who edits my work. I don’t choose a friend or family member. I don’t like having someone who has a problem with being honest with me about my work. I want to hear where the flaws are, and if you can’t tell me that, then you won’t be my editor. Sure, somebody can hurt my feelings, and yes, sometimes I don’t accept the critique quickly, but that is okay because my editor is editing according to the highest quality standards she has. So, what do I do when sentences or paragraphs I have fallen in love with are corrected? Well, I set the story aside and think about it. I read my editor’s point of view over the suggestion I’m mumbling over, or I do a short Zoom meeting with her, and the majority of the time, I come out agreeing with her because I know she has my best interests at heart and she knows what she’s doing. Therefore, when it comes to Grammar, I am thankful that I don’t use AI to edit my stories; I use the flesh and blood human being type who has gained years of experience and doesn’t mind passing it along. Hurrah for human Grammar experts!
Overeating salt is another thing I didn’t take seriously until I arrived in Europe. I noticed many cooks seasoned their food with different herbs and spices and not much salt. I was surprised. The food was delicious but didn’t have a salty taste. Then I came across a non-fiction novel that showed that people who eat salty meals have a high rate of having strokes. That shocked me because I always added extra salt to my food. I changed my eating habits immediately. I no longer ran out to get a hamburger or french fries from a fast food store. I thought twice about buying frozen dinners because I began reading the back of the packages and was astounded at how much sodium is in a frozen meal or a hamburger. Knowing these things brought about a radical change in my eating habits, and I also started cooking. Now I cook fresh food almost every day, and my weight dropped. I still have my curvy hips 🙂 I still have weight, but it is a weight I can live with, and I feel good.
A Fresh German soup with green beans, potatoes, carrots, onions, and sausage
Preparing String Beans the French Way
This brings me to World Obesity Day. I enjoy eating when I cook. Cooking and seasoning my food with herbs and spices stirs my appetite. Oh, and I love chocolate, especially a German chocolate cake with rich dark chocolate. This means that if I don’t do something like making sure I get exercise, such as walking, I gain weight. The good thing for me is that my house is built so that I have to walk up and downstairs when I go to my kitchen, and my office is in my basement, which is 12 stairs down from the hallway entrance to my house. When I go shopping, I park far away from the grocery store or any other store I plan to visit. I hear you asking, readers, why don’t you shop twice a month and save time? We have tiny refrigerators here in Germany, and I usually go shopping three or four times a week, and that is good because I get out of my office, I see people to talk to, I can grab a cappuccino or espresso or Latte Macchiato and watch people. Thus, I have found ways to exercise and not gain weight. As I said above, I have accepted my weight and don’t plan to live on an everlasting diet that doesn’t allow me to enjoy my food.
That’s it for today, folks!
Have a lovely Monday. I’ll see you tomorrow.
Shalom shalom,
Pat Garcia