How this Fast Diet Lifestyle works: Eat these meals tomorrow, for a calorie total of less than 600. On another day this week, eat the meals from a different post, another day of eating 600 calories or less. Eat sensibly the other days of the week. That’s it: a simple way to lose weight and be healthier. Join me in the Fasting Lifestyle.

Newell Convers Wyeth was born on a farm in Massachusetts, USA on October 22, 1882. He grew up immersing himself in the natural world of the farm. His parents observed that he liked drawing, but that lead to differing views. His father urged him to be practical: to learn drafting. His mother encouraged his dreams: to become a painter. After a spell in the Mechanic Arts High School, Newell transferred to Mechanic Arts High School where an instructor suggested a career as an illustrator. The best-known illustrator of the day was Howard Pyle, in Wilmington, Delaware, so Wyeth went there to learn. Whether in the studio or working en plain aire in near-by Pennsylvania, Newell soaked in everything Pyle had to teach him. Two important lessons: 1] put drama into your art; 2] paint about what you know. Soon, young Wyeth had a cover illustration accepted by The Saturday Evening Post. To get some new experiences, the artist made three trips ‘out West’ in the early 1900s, where he produced lively paintings of cowboy life which were much acclaimed. In 1908, Wyeth and his wife settled in Chadds Ford in the Brandywine Valley of Pennsylvania, establishing a studio and raising their four children. He was commissioned by Simon&Schuster to illustrate a series of classic books for children: Treasure Island, Robin Hood, and six others. The pictures were spectacular — dramatic, beautifully executed, and they told the story. These were the illustrations of my childhood, my introduction to art. But as his fame as an illustrator grew, Wyeth came to hate the fact that he was merely a tool of commercialism. Whether it was selling Cream of Wheat or Long John Silver, he longed to be considered a Painter, not just an Illustrator. He executed historical murals for bank headquarters and donated paintings to the war effort in the 1940s. Wyeth was extremely prolific, churning out thousands of illustrations for pay. For himself, he painted portraits and landscapes in a variety of styles, from Impressionism to American Regionalism, but his best-loved works were in the Realist style of his famous illustrations. He died at a railroad crossing in Chadds Ford, when his car was hit by a train in 1945. Wyeth’s house and studio are open to the public, made even more famous as the birthplace and early workshop of NC’s artist son, Andrew.

Our meals for Wyeth’s birthday are colorful and All-American, like the artist.

Carne-Green Chile ScrOmelette: 168 calories… 13.5 g fat… 1.4 g fiber… 12.5 g protein… 13 g carbs… 48 mg Calcium…  NB: Food values shown are for the ScrOmelette and fruit only, and do not include the optional beverages. PB GF The directions below are for an omelette, or as the name ScrOmelette implies, you could scramble it all.

++ 1½ two-oz eggs  HINT: If you are serving one person, crack three 2-oz eggs into a small bowl or glass measuring cup. Whip up those eggs and pour half of their volume into a jar with a lid and put it in the ‘fridge for next week. ++++  ½ ounce carne adovada [pork shoulder with hot spices boiled until it falls apart: make ahead and freeze for future use] ++++ ½ fl oz/1 T roasted green chiles [505 and Hatch brands are very good] ++++ 1½ oz apple or unsweetened apple sauce OR 2 oz watermelon ++++ Optional: blackish coffee[53 calories] or blackish tea or mocha cafe au lait [65 calories] ++++  Optional: 5 oz fruit smoothie or berry-yogurt smoothie [88 calories] ++

Whisk the eggs with salt to taste. Drain the chilis, if too liquidy, and stir into the carne. Put the eggs into a hot pan spritzed with cooking spray. Once the bottom of the eggs are set, sprinkle with carne and chilis, fold and plate. Slice or dish the fruit, brew the optional beverage, and enjoy your taste of the South-West.

Hot Dog & 4-Bean Salad: 302 calories… 12 g fat… 3.6 g fiber… 20 g protein… 18.6 g carbs… 103.7 mg Calcium… GF  PB Hot Dogs and summer salads go together, even for Fasters. This meal is very straight-forward, assuming the 4-bean salad has already been prepared.

++1 Hebrew National reduced-fat hot dog ++++ 1 deviled egg* ++++ ½ cup 4-bean salad** ++++ 2 oz tomato +++ ½ Tbsp Parmesan cheese++

Grill or pan-cook the hot dog. Prepare the deviled egg. Cut out the stem end of the tomato and carve it in half along the equator. Top the tomato with cheese and broil it. Plate it all with the 4-bean salad. Simple food at summer’s end.

*1 Deviled Egg = 2 halves	80 calories… 5 g fat… 0 g fiber… 8 g protein… 1 g carbs … 36.6 mg Calcium…  PB GF
One 2-oz egg, hardboiled	Peel, slice egg in half lengthwise.
prepared yellow mustard, to taste — 1 Tbsp 2%-fat cottage cheese — Yellow Sriracha or New Mexico green chilis in a jar	Scoop out yolk, mash with a fork on a plate. Add these, and mash until well blended and at desired consistancy.
paprika or sumac	Spoon mashed yolk into divot of both egg halves, sprinkle with one of these.

**FOUR-BEAN SALAD:  makes 8 cups ½ cup= 99 calories.. 3.8 g fat .. 3 g fiber.. 3 g protein.. 14 g carbs.. 29.5 mg Calcium… ¼ cup= 49.5 calories… 1.9 g fat… 1.5 g fiber… 1.6 g protein… 7 g carbs… 14.7 mg Calcium..

2 cups fresh green beans— 2 cups fresh yellow[wax] beans	Cook beans until tender, cut into 1” pieces. Put into a bowl.
2 cups canned kidney beans — 2 cups canned garbanzo beans	Drain and rinse canned beans. Add to the bowl.
1 cup onions, chopped	Add onions to bowl with salt and pepper to taste.
½ c. cider vinegar — ½ c. sugar [maybe 1/3 c. ?] — ¼ c. olive oil	Whisk thesetogether. Toss with vegetables, refrigerate 4+ hours. Keeps for days in the ‘fridge.