Today marks the end of the third week of being on this diet. I am one week away from my four week mark (see even when I am not playing with a full stomach I am still able to do simple mathematical problems). I’ve now started to get into a routine of eating every 2.5-3 hours. I am getting used to the powdered food that make up the meal replacements for most of the day.

I’ve become accustomed to having a protein and green vegetables for dinner and ending my day with a calorie controlled snack. I’m building a pattern of good choices and have remained committed to this eating plan to remain on track. I’m not officially supposed to weigh-in until tomorrow but I snuck on the scale this morning to see I had dropped another 2.5 pounds bringing me under 195 in a long time.

Today is also Groundhog Day. It’s an interesting holiday where the world turns to a small furry rodent who comes out of hibernation to look around for his shadow. If he does not see his shadow it is to signify an early spring. If he does see his shadow that means there will be six more weeks of winter.

As you might imagine, Groundhog Day is a rather minor holiday especially for those who live in the Sunbelt states such as Arizona where today’s weather is to be sunny and a comfortable 70 degrees. If the groundhog is suggesting that we have six more weeks of this I am completely onboard with that. Go groundhog!

In 1993 Columbia Pictures released a Harold Ramis film called Groundhog Day. For those of you who might not have seen it, the story is about a self-centered weatherman who is sent to cover Groundhog Day. After having to endure a miserable day covering the “weather-forecasting rat” the weatherman finds himself in an endless loop of reliving that day over and over.

Groundhog Day the movie is a favorite around our house and each year we celebrate the holiday by watching the movie and eating our traditional dinner consisting of ground hog. It is important to note the space between “ground” and “hog”. A lesson I have never forgotten after hearing the comedy routine of Bob & Ray.

A year never goes by that I don’t secretly wonder, what if that happened to me, what if I was stuck repeating the same day over and over and over? What would I learn? Well for one thing I would not want this to happen while I was on a diet that’s for sure.

I found myself carefully considering what exactly I would be eating today. What if I woke up in the morning and found myself repeating the day before? Would I really want to start my day off with a plate of powdered eggs that make me gag with every spoonful? Not on your life!

At one point this morning I seriously considered breaking my diet and running down to Denny for a Grand Slam breakfast followed by lobster and steak for lunch and ending the day at PF Changs for Chinese food ending with a big slice of the Great Wall of Chocolate dessert. Oh sure eating that every day would likely kill you but if I were reliving the same day over and over that wouldn’t be such a bad thing either.

Instead, I didn’t break from my routine. I had powdered pancakes, a chocolate shake, chicken noodle soup, an energy bar, shrimp with a green salad and broccoli and ended with a brownie. It wasn’t quite the same but my theory is that if I keep reliving that day over and over then by tomorrow I will have reached my target weight.

At this time, as a public service, we are glad to post the following superseding additional supplementary bulletin from the Office of Fluctuation Control and Ceiling Repairs, Bureau of Edible Condiments, Soluble, Insoluble, and Indigestible Fats and Glutinous Derivatives, Washington, D.C.:

Correction of the Correction of the Correction of Directive 943456201, issued earlier, February 2, 2009. First correction: that number is now 943456202. The second correction: please note that said Directive reading “chopped hogmeat” formerly reading “ground hogmeat” formerly reading “groundhog meat” should now read “sausage.”

At this time, as a public service, we are glad to post the following additional supplementary bulletin from the Office of Fluctuation Control and Ceiling Repairs, Bureau of Edible Condiments, Soluble, Insoluble, and Indigestible Fats and Glutinous Derivatives, Washington, D.C.:

Correction of the Correction of Directive 943456201, issued yesterday afternoon, February 1, 2009, which noted said Directive should read “ground hogmeat” instead of “groundhog meat.” Note that “ground hogmeat” should now read “chopped hogmeat.”

At this time, as a public service, we are glad to post the following supplementary bulletin from the Office of Fluctuation Control and Ceiling Repairs, Bureau of Edible Condiments, Soluble, Insoluble, and Indigestible Fats and Glutinous Derivatives, Washington, D.C.:

Correction of Directive 943456201, issued earlier today, February 1, 2009, concerning the fixed price of groundhog meat. In the Directive above-named, the price-fixed low-water-level quotation on groundhog meat should read “ground hogmeat.”

At this time, as a public service, we are glad to post the following bulletin from the Office of Fluctuation Control and Ceiling Repairs, Bureau of Edible Condiments, Soluble, Insoluble, and Indigestible Fats and Glutinous Derivatives, Washington, D.C.:

Directive 943456201: As of February 1, 2009, the price of groundhog meat will be fixed at a level higher than the price of groundhog meat on October 15, 2008, with the exception of the low-level water route outline in the Bureau’s directions of 20066, of finding the Kansas City stockyards. Note: slightly higher west of the Rockies.