It seems like I’ve been spending an inordinate amount of time in the air lately with no relief in sight. For example, a week ago I flew to Tampa, Florida to attend the Slamball Draft at IMG Academies in Bradenton. Next, I flew over to Key West for several Pirate Soul and Rum Barrel meetings – we were one of the host establishments for the Key West Songwriters’ Festival. Then off to San Diego via Atlanta to speak to the Mission & Combat Support crew of Lockheed Martin at the historic Del Coronado. Great audience! And finally, I returned home to Philly International via Chicago to hug my wife, clean off my desk, attend several business meetings, and repack for another cross country trip to Los Angeles – where I’m pitching a movie with a couple of Hollywood heavyweights.
As an experienced “road warrior” - as CNN likes to describe frequent fliers – I’m not only proficient at fitting a week’s worth of clothes into a carry-on suitcase, but I’m like a mechanical engineer when it comes to packing my knapsack. In addition to strategically arranging my Sony Vaio laptop, Bose headsets, Casio camera, Olympus DVR, prescription sunglasses, business files, magazines, a good novel, and a deck of cards into their respective compartments, I prepare my munchies to go.
I’ve learn from past experiences to never leave home without it.
Have you ever been delayed on a flight? Or barely made the flight without grabbing some nourishment beforehand? Or stranded in an airport for an extended period of time with no restaurant in sight? Or offered airplane fare that you wouldn’t serve a Dallas Cowboy fan?
I have. And I can tell you that it doesn’t agree with my high-energy lifestyle.
So it’s mandatory that my pre-flying ritual require a detour to the kitchen to rummage through the pantry and prepare a bag of GORP and grab a couple of energy bars. My bar of choice, most recently, has been the new GoLean Chewy protein & fiber bar. I love GoLean Kashi for breakfast and I was psyched when the manufacturer marketed a protein bar saran wrapped to the top of their cereal box as a taste test. The bar has 13g of protein and 6g of fiber at 280 calories – and it doesn’t taste like sawdust!
I think I’ve tried every high-protein bar on the market and there are only a limited number that I consider edible. The GoLean version is definitely one of them.
But when it comes to munchies, I desire my zip lock bag of GORP – good old-fashion raisins and peanuts – to take the edge off my stomach rumblings. In all honestly, my GORP should really be spelled GOPPACS - good old-fashion peanuts, pistachios, almonds, cashews and sesame sticks. And sometimes I get really daring and toss in a pinch of craisins or M&Ms to the nutty concoction.
But be careful.
Whereas most nuts are a good source of protein, fiber, Vitamin E, iron, and heart-healthy unsaturated fat, they do pack a high caloric punch. Therefore, make sure when you do reach for your munchies bag, you limit your indulgence to just one handful. Do as I do and place the nuts on a napkin, relock the bag, and place it back into your knapsack/pocketbook/briefcase.
Otherwise, the taste and temptation will outpace your stomach’s feeling of satiety and you might eat the whole damn bag!
This entry was posted
on Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 7:57 am by Pat Croce
Leave a Reply
May 9th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
Pat, you continue to be an amazing, sparkling, scintillating source of inspiration! Am loving your blog entries. Can’t wait to hear about your pitching in L.A.
Keep up the great work!
Thanks,
Joe Ayella
Wayne, PA