今個星期我會use 我旳一百二十五瑰錢吃好旳，所以好 fast沒有錢left over after 星期四。

uh oh!!!!

你明白我寫什麼嗎？

=）

Day 21

Okay ssooo I know I'm supposed to give you all a chinese video blog but I've had quite some trouble with a camera so, this will have to do for now but I promise I will still make you all a video! But for now here is a short chinese blog (curtesy of my collegue Dorothy for helping me type on the computer).


我已經開始了這個活動的第21日了, 我最大的感受就是時間不足!!!! 而且我瘦了, 但一點都不健康.

~CLICK ME~

以上是這個活動的網址, 希望各位朋友看完後, 可以在網址上簽名, 多謝各位支持~!


I've not changed my diet much, I tried to have a sandwhich week but it was hard because I'd have to pack the bread separately from the filling and then the bread would get squished and well, it wasn't nice. So, I'm back on the oatmeal and corn with bbq pork or noodles with vegg. Wellcome has a great $10/2 packages of vegetable deal at the end of the day. It's not the freshest but it's still good!

This week I've had for fruits and veg - 3 Bananas, sugar snap beans, peppers and onions.

I also aced my chinese reading and writing examination level one last night so I spent $26.00 on a chicken mc nugget meal at mc donalds. It was deliciously greasy and my stomach wasn't too happy with me after. . .

10 days to go!


Allowance $255
Spent $111
Left $144

Day 13

I've dropped 2 kilos so far which works out to be around 4 - 5 pounds. This is not a normal or safe way to drop weight but it's happening. I realize there are ways around the system as a helper to make your food etc etc etc but you won't get the nutrients you need if you don't have the time to prepare everything. My problem has been prep time. I work long hours and I am wrecked by the time I'm home to prepare my next day's lunch. I do it enough even off this challenge but it's nice to have that odd day where I can just pick up a salad on the go. I've also skipped breakfast a few times this week because I've been really tired. I've swam once this week and yoga twice.

I've had breakfast twice this week, both times just 4 tablespoons of oatmeal with 2 tablespoons of corn or cream corn. For lunch I've again, alternated between noodles and oatmeal BUT this week I've had pork stew from a tin (Which i dared not take a photo of) mainly fatty pork soaked with preserved veggies in an oil based sauce. I ate this for two meals. It wasn't the nicest texture but I ate it knowing that I had to make up for what I wasn't getting.

Today is day thirteen and I bought myself the cheapest can of luncheon meat (or spam) that I could find. $8.9. It really bothers me that processed, salt preserved, mystery meat from a can that comes with its own screwy thing (that I don't know how to use) can cost up at $42HKD!!!!! I think I will stick to cheap bbq pork. At least I know what it is and it's fresher.

I've also opened my beans and have been having a scoop or two with my meals. This week I have had a lot of protein, eggs, beans, mystery meats. But I have had NO vegg. other than the canned corn and no fruits. I'm dying for something sweet next week and not just another strawberry finger roll.

Next week I'm challening myself to a sandwhich week. Any ideas for cheap eats that will last a few days in the fridge? I'm halfway there!

I came across this Blogger ALL KINDS OF CANNED MEAT!!!!


Allowance $293
Spent $38
Left $255

- Day 8 -

Today marks the beginning of week two.

I went to the doctor on Saturday and was told that I shouldn't see a lot of changes in my blood work unless I continue this for at least six months. However I will definitely feel different as I've cut out a lot of calories and I'm being forced to be conscious of every single food item I eat. I've also cut out all the sugary drinks that I'd normally have three times a week (chrysanthemum tea).

Another response that I've been given by Penny Ormsbee, Registered Holistic Nutritional Consultant said that

I agree that Vitamin C could be an issue, as well as B Vitamins and antioxidants that green veggies provide. I'm not a fan of too much soy and consider soy milk to be yet another refined food. I wouldn't replace it with anything but raw or lightly steamed dark green leafy veggies. Bok Choy is one of the most nutritious foods you can eat. Greens have all the calcium, protein, and nutrients you need. Keep us posted on this challenge. I find it very interesting. Penny Penny Ormsbee, RHN, RNCP/ROHP Registered Holistic Nutritional Consultant, Educator and EAV Practitioner

So this week I am eating as many beans and meat as I can. I've also bought myself a can opener for canned foods which I normally NEVER eat, so this week will be tough to get through eating tinned food with as little cooking as possible.

I did my first shop tonight and I bought myself some canned beans, corn, pork stew stuff (just to try it out), pickled cabbage, shrimp noodles for next week bought at $7!!! So happy about that! I won't be having much fruit throughout this week but i'm keeping my eye out for another bag of apples!

Tomorrow I've got soy bean- fake meat for lunch. no cooking! Also a small tub of oatmeal and corn. Today I was also given three big boxes of egg rolls and almond cookies from Macu given to me as a present by my students who went there for the weekend. . . I love the cigar shaped egg rolls and I can't have them til the end of the 30 days...Here are the photos!

Allowance $365

Spent $72

Left $293

Dee- Day 5, 6, 7

I would like to start by showing you what everyone else ate on day 4 at dinner. . .

Fish and tiger prawn pie, melon wrapped in proscuto, and the amazing mango raspberry marscapone cheesecake.

My dinner, oatmeal with bbq pork and corn. dessert - custard cream bun (which charlie bear ate half of so I got a sliver of cheesecake) SOOO YUM! I savoured every bit of it and never loved cheesecake more than that night.

Over the next week I will be having oatmeal for breakfast with either a spoonful of beans or cream corn. No more eggs unless I can find that $9 box again for 12 eggs! I had noodles for lunch day 5 with an apple for a snack and no dinner as I skipped it to go out and say goodbye to my best friend who was leaving day 7 for Nepal. That night I was so hungry and tired and ran off my adrenaline of saying goodbye.

Day 6 was not an easy morning to get to work for ten a.m. I skipped breakfast and brought a full cup of oatmeal with creamed corn and plantain banana and an apple. By four o clock I was finished work and bought myself a ham and egg bun from the bakery for $5. Hot, fresh and soooo good! By 6 I had eaten dinner and by 9 I was out saying goodbye again spending my friend's last night in Hong Kong out and not in bed and of course, feeling hungry by 4 am. I just went to bed and getting up Day 7 (again for work) it was rough but I made it through by eating my oatmeal with plantain banana, drinking water and eating an apple. After a very short and sad goodbye I went home to eat my noodle and onion dinner. One dessert roll that Dani and I had purchased the week before we started this challenge. Which reminds me, I forgot to take that off my spending so here's the update

Allowance $375

Spent $10 (dessert rolls)

Left $365

Dee - Day Three and Four -

Okay so I'm still working on getting a camera to record a video for next week and I am going to the doctor tomorrow for a full on physical with my GP. I've also been posted onto a nutritionists forum by a trusted health concious friend and I will post up their predictions and recommendations to help me eat as best as I can given my restraints.

Day Three - It was so hot out and I didn't really feel like eating because of the heat so for breakfast i ate one egg and 1/2 cup of oats. For lunch I had my noodle tofu sprouts mix but spread across a few hours in between my classes. By the time dinner hour came I was starving and decided to go to the shop and use the rest of my allowance for the week. I bought bbq pork marked down, a can of corn, chicken soup base, a bag of apples and snow pea snaps.

For dinner I had to eat the rest of my tofu because it started to go sour so i just tossed it in a pan with my snow peas and a little bit of pork. It wasn't half bad, just a little bit of a sour after taste. Well it was better than throwing it out! Now I know that if you keep fresh tofu, make sure you change the water its soaking in, everyday instead of pouring it out!

Here's the money situation after tonight's groceries.

Allowance $436
Spent $54 (includes yesterday's shop)
Left $382 (I have $7 left for any emergencies before Monday)


Day 4

Of course I had to jinks myself. Today I forgot that we were having a family gathering at a house for dinner and I didn't pack my dinner, only my lunch. SO, I spent my last $7 on a cup noodle from 7-11 for lunch with my apple and I will eat my Oatmeal, corn, bbq pork mix for dinner.

I'm feeling really tired today and don't feel like swimming but I will be doing Yoga tonight and definitely swimming tomorrow morning.

I promise a cantonese video blog soon and a cantonese blog in the coming week too!

Dee - Day Two -

Today I had the most delicious breakfast of one egg with ketchup!

For lunch I packed an orange and an apple and a small container of oatmeal from yesterday and never ate it... I think I'll save it for tomorrow!

After work I went to the market again to gather a few more eggs and plantain. I put the noodles in to show you all as well what they look like, shrimp noodles or scallop noodles are a much better option than instant noodles because they've got less preservatives in them and they're just dried, not fried!

So for tonight's dinner, noodles, tomatoes and sprouts. I had to cook the rest of my sprouts because they were going off so tomorrow's lunch is noodles, tofu and sprouts.

THE CHALLENGE RULES

Here are the rules regarding the one month challenge

1. Lasts for one month.
2.

a. $300/30 days→$10 a day. (or $500/30 days→$17/day). Could be one person (Danielle) on $300, one (Dee) on $500.

b. Unlimited water allowed.

c. Meals taken, if at all, without cooking, and in as short a time as possible, assuming full work load of a helper with no time/chance to cook own food for saving money, and no time for eating other than very quickly between chores

d. Can spend more or less on some days, but incrementally only get $10/day.

e. Record video at least once a month with some regularity.

3. Start the month with:

a. Check vital stats: weight, height, energy level (?), health check if possible. Also do again at end of 30 days on this ‘$10/day diet’

b. Show you know what a ‘healthy meal’ is (3-2-1 veggie-carb-meat?). Each day record of what was eaten, also can ‘compare’ to the healthy benchmark.

Dee - Day One -

So I woke up wondering what to eat since I didn't do my wet market shop yet and all I did have was Oatmeal and my cheap fruit of apples and oranges. So for breakfast I ate one cup of oatmeal with a spoonful of condensed milk.

Almost two thirds finished my bowl of yummy oats I couldn't eat all the oatmeal because I didn't add enough water and I was running late so just for fun, I wanted to see if the cat I'm sitting would like it... after one lick she got up and left.

I ventured the wet market near to closing time for the best deals. Located in Causeway Bay just under the bridge by Times Square where the hustle and bustle of locals trying to sell their fish, noodles, shrimps, eggs, fruits, flowers, meat, everything fresh you can think of! Think of it as walking through a jam packed supermarket, Wellcome, Park and Shop, Loblaws, Zhers and having every single person in there shouting at you the price of every single item in there. That's what it's like in the wet market. It's an amazing experience that can sometimes be overwhelming if you don't have a list or if you're pressed for time!

After the madness I left with sprouts, two eggs, tomatoes, tofu, noodles, two oranges, two apples and an onion. All at a whopping grand total of $44 for the first day!

I should probably tell you now that I didn't eat the second helping of Oatmeal I packed for my lunch and only ate my apple. So for dinner I made noodles with half a tomato, tofu and sprouts.

It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be since part of the challenge is to cook as little as possible so I just threw everything into hot water for a few minutes! The tofu is bland but it's good for you when you can't have meat but the tomatoes tasted like they'd been pickled in muddy water but I still downed the little pieces to get the nutrients and not the flavour.

Day one a success!

Monthly Allowance $500

Spent - $64 (41 from wet market + 20 for the oats)

Left over $436

Unhealthy Domestics

Under the domestic worker employee- employer contract agreement under the Hong Kong Government laws, a domestic worker is entitled to a minimum food allowance of $300 HKD PER MONTH. This seems like an alright deal since they get to eat food in the house with the families right? WRONG! It's not always the case, in the most extreme cases, employers are allowed, LEGALLY to deny any food for a live in caregiver.

Let's look at numbers. In Hong Kong the minimum cost for a caregiver is $3, 580 plus a minimum food allowance of $300 PER MONTH. Now let's look at Canada, it costs on average about $11,000 HKD per month just for a live in caregiver to work ONLY 40 hours a week. This cost is almost three times what it costs in Hong Kong. How can that be???

So are you still wondering what I'm doing here? Well, my friend Danielle told me about this challenge of living off $300-$500 HKD for a whole month just for food, just like all our domestic workers. I immediately text her to say, I want to do it too and here we are! It may be a small step but it's a step nonetheless.

In my initial interviews, I asked random people from all over, "Could you live off $500 for a whole month just on food?" ALL responded with, "Pardon!?" Like I was joking and ALL responded with, "NO!"

So I ask you, why should the domestic workers of Hong Kong?

-Dee

Hong Kong Labour Employment Rights and benefits