important update (creative title)

Hello world, I am writing a quick 5 minute update so that all my great readers can have a concept of what I have been up to. I have been working at a social work internship since the beginning of march, it is going really well and I am so excited to help out people who are blind like myself. I am learning a great deal about this field and I feel this experience is extremely beneficial. I have been keeping track of the Yankees’ progress so far this season: the team looks very competitive but after all it is still early and anything can happen. Nevertheless, I am hoping for the best (eternal optimist) and would really like to attend a few games this season (hint hint). The return of baseball is a great thing, especially because I experience an immense feeling of anticipation during the months of the off-season.
I enjoy reading audio books very much, and I just finished reading a fascinating yet strange science fiction book: WWW Wake. It is difficult to summarize such a complicated but well-told story, so for your information this is part of amazon.com’s description: “Blind teen Caitlin Decter gets an experimental signal-processing implant that inexplicably opens up her vision to the wondrous infrastructure of the World Wide Web. Inside the Web is a newborn webmind, a globe-spanning self-contained consciousness that is just becoming aware of the outside world.” I recommend this book, as long as you found that portion of the description to be of interest.
In other news, my struggles with weight loss continue, and my scale can never decide how much I weigh from day to day. I have been creating many salads this week, and I am continuing my diet despite the occasional frustrations. Finally, I am busy doing many reviews of restaurants and venues for a project I am working on called Accessible New York. According to our new website, “Accessible New York empowers people with disabilities to share their experiences of New York's dining, lodging, and entertainment destinations, and provides quality information about these establishments to people who are ready, willing, and able to dine, stay and play in the greatest city on Earth”.
I hope you have learned more about me and my progress from this update, there will be more blogs to come in the near future. Thanks everyone!
Dan

I hate my scale (the mystery of the 4 pound gain in 24 hours)

I hate my scale! Yes, I really do. Is it wrong to despise an inanimate object? Oh well, it’s true, it is my lifelong enemy. How can it be that I gained four pounds in one day? Yesterday I was feeling good about myself: I came to the false conclusion that I had lost 2 pounds, and I was in a positive mood. Today, my scale says (allegedly) that I have gained 2 pounds. (A four pound gain in only one day, from a loss to a gain of 2 pounds) How is this possible? Here was my day of eating yesterday: Breakfast: fiber one cereal, lunch: low fat cold cut sandwich, dinner: small lean hamburger with sautéed vegetables, and an apple. Does all of this manifest a four pound gain? I don’t think so. Now I feel confused and frustrated that I gained weight in the last month despite working out 4 times a week and eating a (mostly) healthy diet.
I don’t understand the art of weight loss. My body just does not want to give up the fat (my doctor even told me that). How many calories must I eat in a day, how many times must I work out in a week, in order to obtain my desired results? This is an ongoing struggle for me and I feel that I am losing it. No, seriously, I am losing it. Here are some possible factors: 1. I have a large bone structure, 2. I drink numerous glasses of water each day, 3. I take several different types of medication which could affect my weight. However, if these reasons do not change from day to day, then I cannot figure out this puzzle. I need some help: Any advice? I know that I always ask for comments but I really need some support, or just some tips, thank you all.
Dan

red meat overdose: my review of Burger Joint

Hi everyone, my recent diet has included way too much red meat so I am going back to a more moderate and healthy regimen. However, I figured if I was going to be “bad”, I might as well try out another restaurant which my friend said makes excellent hamburgers. That is the story behind my new food review:
Burger Joint
119 W. 56th St. (inside Le Parker Meridien, really? Yes!)
New York NY
4 stars out of 5
I would have never thought that this crowded restaurant for an inexpensive but tasty meal would be located inside of a fancy New York City hotel, but I was incorrect. It was extremely hard to even find it: the burger joint is hidden behind curtains in a hallway leading from the lobby. The menu is very simple: “if you don’t see it, we don’t have it!” This is the exact message on their menu and they mean it: the list of available food and drinks are short but cover all the bases, which are hamburgers, fries, and shakes. Therefore, I decided to be old-fashioned and simply ordered a plain hamburger (yes plain, no lettuce, tomato, etc.) and a chocolate shake. While waiting for my meal, I found the last available seat in the cramped dining area. The burger joint’s ambiance was laid back: people from all over the city gathered together, a variety of music was playing, and it felt very comfortable. When the food arrived, my mouth was watering and I felt relieved that it did not disappoint me. I bit into the hamburger and was reminded of old summer time barbecues, sitting on the grass and feeling the warmth of the sun. By this I mean that the hamburger was well cooked, delicious, and consisted of a patty of high quality beef (it had a distinctive grilled flavor). I wouldn’t call it a “top ten” burger, but I was very satisfied and it met my expectations. The shake was thick rich, and sweet, it did not meet the excellence of Shake Shack but was still a real treat.
The burger joint is a place that I would recommend to try out once. It’s atmosphere was unique and the food was of a superior quality. Please do not be dismayed by my comparisons of this to other establishments, it is simply my mental way of ranking restaurants in order to determine their merits. I would be curious to hear your feedback about my review, or of this restaurant, please leave your comments below. Until next time… I will try to eat better and I look forward to hearing from my great readers.
Dan