Terry-fying Travels

I'm back home today and my stomach is not happy with me. Waking up at 2:45am was not ideal...so I figured I'd wing it and find something suitable to eat along the drive up to Tampa.  My first presentation was schedule to begin at 9am, and there were two people to stop and pick up before we could be on our way. We didn't leave the last pick up until 5am, so I knew at that point that my food was going to be an issue. So, here is a list of my mistakes.

Mistake Number 1: NEVER wing it when it comes to food AND you are traveling with other people. No one on the trip was picky out food, so I didn't want to make things difficult for the others. McDonald's was our first and only stop on the way up. McDonald's....really? How was I supposed to make that work? Granted, it was on the side of the highway, and it was fast, AND we were in a rush to get to Tampa on time. I know that they offer oatmeal now, but I've seen it and it does NOT look like it does on TV commercials. I love oatmeal, but I need it to look...appetizing. I decided to go with one of their breakfast burritos because I really wanted something warm.. I asked to have the meat taken out. I haven't had eggs in over two months, so I knew straight off that this was going to be bad for my stomach. The cashier asked me to pick a meal number, so I asked her what the difference was between each meal. As she described each one, I realized that the only difference was the kind of meat they put in the burrito, LOL. I reminded her that I wasn't going to have any meat, so it really didn't matter which number I picked. She still insisted that I had to pick one. I thought that was funny, so I took a few seconds to pretend that I was really thinking about it, and then I chose number 4. I had orange juice with my number 4, and as I drank my OJ, I realized how gross store bought orange juice really is! I've been drinking fresh juices for only two months now, and I had already forgotten what store bought juice tastes like. I'll tell you what it tastes like....it tastes like YUCK!

Mistake Number 2: Don't assume that a variety of healthy food options will be provided by your corporate host, especially when the food is free. I should have planned better for yesterday. I should have made my breakfast and lunch at home and taken food with me. The school site that hosted the workshop provided a typical lunch that would have been fine by my old standards. This time, it wasn't OK for me. They served deli sandwiches, chips, sweet tea, fresh bananas, and cookies. I took a few of the sandwiches and pulled the meat out. I left the cheese in, which was bad for my tummy (dairy is not my friend). I also had a bag of Sun Chips, a banana, and confetti cookies. I drank water. At the end of it all, I felt bloated, yet still hungry---unsatisfied really, but it was my own fault for not having planned better.

Mistake Number 3: Don't order food when you are hungry and cranky. My last group had a handful rude attendees. You know the type, they play with their cell phones and talk to their neighbor the whole time you're up there. At one point I felt like walking over and ramming the phone down the person's throat. I fantasized about doing that more than once during my presentation, lol. I swear it's the only thing that kept me going at that point.  Anyway, after the workshop, we stopped for dinner. I was tired, cranky, and HUNGRY, so....I ordered a veggie pizza made on a tortilla with Alfredo sauce and cheese (more dairy, ugh!) and I also had a baked potato with butter and sour cream (again, more dairy). I was so gassy and bloated that I thought I was going to throw up during the entire car ride back. When I woke up this morning, the toilet bowl became my best friend :(

The idea of having to do this again is terrifying.