Determined To Succeed

Good morning, everyone.

I am sitting in my hotel room before heading out to join the Black Enterprise Entrepreneur Conference & Expo here in Atlanta. I didn’t mean to sleep so late but I needed it after my long travel and registration day yesterday.

OK, I know what you’re saying. “Bill, so did you get your Chicago-style hot dog in the airport?” Well, I can honestly say no, I didn’t. But there’s a part of me that thinks I should have. Let me explain.

When I travel it is so easy for me to grab fast food, which I define as food you can grab and eat using one hand – a hot dog, burger, taco. You get the picture and I so didn’t want to do that. So, before I left home I had some assorted fruit and coffee (mmmmm, coffee) and started my day.

I was OK until I hit Chicago, then it was like the fast food gods were conspiring the get me to eat. Eat. EAT! You’ve heard me talk about how the hot dog cart hits you as soon as you get off the plane, right? Well, that was there and was avoided. However I didn’t know there was an Italian Beef cart, too. Oh man! That wasn’t fair. But, I resisted. Yes, I survived both and made my way to my connecting gate.

Along the way, though, I not only passed a couple of McDonald’s stations but so many peple carrying McDonald’s yummy good breakfasts I thought I was inhaling crack. I haven’t been to McDonald’s in years and the thought of a breakfast sandwich (with that awesome sausage they have) and a hash brown would hit the spot.

It would hit the spot alright. My ass. Actually. The sausage sandwich would hit my butt while the has browns ensconced themselves in my belly fat. So I resisted that, too. I was doing well. So well, in fact, I didn’t eat anything else all day, and that is not a good thing. I got to Atlkanta, checked in to both the conference and the hotel and was beside myself with hunger. Again, not good.

So what DID I eat yesterday? I ordered room service. I ordered an awesome tomato soup, chicken quesadilla and, yes, an order of spicy dinner grits. However, you wil be proud – I didn’t order a Coke. I was good. Well, sort of. You’d have thought I was a Hoover vacuum cleaner the way I absorbed all that dinner, which really could have NOT included at least one of those items. That will cause me to grumble ever so slightly.

Grrr (but not a long sustained grrrrrrrrrrrr).

There was one point though I laughed out loud – my room has an electronic scale, which is awesome. And since all scales read dfferently I will go by number of pounds gained or lost this trip. Today, I weigh the same as yesterday, which I suppose is a good thing.

I need to eat smarter today. As I get ready to attend today’s activities I will keep last night’s dinner (and my scale in mind). Eating smartly – not just eating the right things – is all part of the equation.