Times are Tough?

The sensationalized news stories of the last few months would have us believe that the US economy is on a downward spiral. You would be even more inundated with these stories in Michigan. Well, I am here to say that I don't see it.....We went to Costco this morning since I had two coupons that were soon to expire for $3 of an 18" pizza and $3 off some cookies made in their bakery. These two items are things I have never purchased at Costco anyway, but due to the additional savings, I thought I would take the leap and just bring it over to my mom's house for our weekend visit we always make. Anyway, we got there at 11am. The place opens at 10am on Saturday. The parking lot was JAMMED!! Consider this, Costco only accepts cash and Amex or debit card. Well, I put in my order for this 18" monster of a vegetable pizza that looked like a freaking ceiling fan. L, M and I walked to the back of the store and retrieved the cookies and we were out of bacon, so we got some of that. We came back and every register was lined up with humanity as when we arrived before I put in the order for the pizza. Man, I was just thinking how amazing it was to think that if the economy is so bad, you would think people would be a little less likely to purchase so many items from Costco. Don't get me wrong, my only reason for going to Costco is that I can get some items there cheaper in terms of unit price and they have a great selection of goods, but there were people there with their carts full of items that can be purchased cheaper at other stores or farmers markets, etc.

The next time another person tells me how bad the local economy is, I'll just wink and nod.

A Race I Plan to Run....

My goal is to compete in a 10K race on Thanksgiving morning. Some people at work were discussing this and asked me if I wanted to get in on it. Of course, none of us are competitive runners, but like to stay in shape and a 10K is not an impossible distance for the average weekend warrior although I am truly far from a distance runner. I could bike 10K in my sleep, but running it will be a decent challenge that I am beginning preparations for now. My issue is that I am pretty comfortable on my treadmill, but will incorporate more outside running now that summer is in full effect. My coworkers want everyone to keep pace until the last 1/2 mile and then OUR RACE will begin. I'm ok with that idea and obviously I would like to win since I will gladly brag and remind them who their daddy is. :p

We'll see what happens, but I am always down for some friendly competition.

Planned Obsolescence

I was pretty disgusted with this recent episode in my life. That episode involves a refrigerator....our refrigerator. A fridge has the task of stalling the spoilage of perishable food items. A bonus of consumer fridges is the attached freezer. This episode involved a slowly dying fridge portion and a fully functioning freezer portion.

The only real casualty was a 1/3 gallon of milk. L noticed items in the fridge not staying cool about 3 days before we got it fixed. Getting it fixed is what kind of annoyed me. I'm a cheapskate and was in no mood to call a "handy-man" or a suspect company to come in and try to persuade me to give them more money than I needed to. We went into research mode. Found the exploded diagram on the company site and tried all the troubleshooting listed. We vacuumed the condenser coils to rid them of dust. I had a bad feeling the motherboard. Yes, you read that right....My fridge has a friggin mother board on the back. This is nothing new. Most new fridges posses these items. Oh...the dumbing down of society...Anyway, We checked the part cost and it was about $220. I almost screamed. Age of the fridge? Just over 5years old. What a joke. Well....I got lucky with calling a local company since the part + shipping would probably have been the cost of someone coming out anyway. We had all of our food and other items out of the fridge and freezer into coolers to stall the spoilage. Oh...I forgot to mention that this happened on a Sunday. DOUBLE the labor PRICE!! Well, L found an add in the yellowbook that boasted of NO EXTRA CHARGE FOR WEEKENDS. Alright!! A possible winner. Well, I called them, the guy actually showed up earlier than first mentioned. He knew exactly what to look for and a manual defrosting of the freezer, motherboard replacement, $260 and several hours of cooling back down, the fridge was cooling and freezing like a freaking champ.

What happened to the days of having appliances for 20yrs and them still working fine?

planned obsolescence is alive and well.

I was a fan of women's tennis...

Now, I just want to work out......

Fragrance-Free Deodorant

I'm kind of pissed right now. Reason? I am on my 4th or 5th brand of fragrance-free deodorant during the last year or two and the stuff friggin stinks! Sheesh. In combination with trying to minimize the chemical exposure where I can, I just thought I was doing something that my own chemistry may react favorable to and actually not kick off some BO....sheesh. I may be a bit more conscious of this than the rest of the world, but it's annoying. I see fragrance-free and that is what I expect.

Back to the chems I go unless I just go into hippie mode and flaunt the odor........maybe not.

Grey Days are no fun

Man, I am tired of these grey days in the MI. Sheesh. I don't suffer from SAD, but am really annoyed at how the sun refuses to show itself. Last Saturday was great. Sun was on blaze and it was in the high 70's. Life was grand, but the past few days have been depression in the sky and I am supposed to plant in 2weeks? The ground needs consistent heat to allow for the seedlings to do their thing and extract nutrients from the soil and produce fruit. Something better happen quick......

Jumped on the CSA Wagon Yesterday

I have been researching CSAs for the last two years and took the plunge and bought a share for the 2008 season. 20 weeks to be exact. I split it 3ways to lower the cost and am pretty exited about it; less than $12/wk is hardly going to break the bank for some quality produce. I spoke with one of the farmers for about 20min and it was a pretty interesting conversation. With gas prices through the roof and an overall unsavory and far from local food supply, I am happy to support a local economy and feel good about the implications of spending a little bit more, but getting a much better product.

Here's the farm I went with.

Almost stepped on the bugger...

It was a close call for this warty amphibian. I was walking to the backyard to put some trash in the can and as I just happen to glance down, I see this thing jump...."Woah!" says I and I pivot out of its way and jet back inside and grab my cam and run back and the thing is on its way into the street. I crouch and shoot. My neighbors probably thought I was out of my mind. I let it hop away and into the night it disappeared.

The bag lady was right all along....

In an effort to reduce my contribution to adding plastic trash to the earth, I have been utilizing 2-3 medium-sized cloth bags on my weekly shopping trips for groceries for the last month. I have already slashed the amount of plastic bags in the house by a significant amount. The bags are useful for small trash cans we have in the basement and under the kitchen sink, but I have not needed to add to the large amount that I have accumulated for the last few years and kept hidden since I never wanted to throw them away. I should have converted to reusable bags much earlier, but since I was just lazy in that respect, I failed to do so, but now that I am doing that, I don't know why more people don't do the same. Some stores already charge for using them and since Euros are much more concerned about the environment than the average american, you find higher usage of reusable bags for shopping. Whole Foods will eliminate plastic bags in about two weeks. Think of the implications to the earth if Walmart or Best Lie (thanks D; I still laugh using that description) had a policy like this in place.

Once again, americans need to wake up and think about tomorrow....

Blog Layout

Yay/Nay


Any thoughts?

UniverSOUL HealthCare

Sheesh..I'm not the biggest fan of a full-scale Universal Health Care situation, but I certainly like to hear ideas about it. I am not an economist, nor do I play one on TV, but the cost of this long, drawn-out and stupid war may have caused us to kiss that concept good-bye.

:(

Working the System

I'm not naive and am well-aware that the "system" gets worked everyday, all over the world in many different forms and fashions. The system I am referring to in this post is the welfare system in the US of A. Man, this situation just pissed me off when I witnessed it. It goes a little something like this....I was at the store today getting some groceries. I finished shopping and was looking for a checkout line. I found one and fell into the queue. The obligatory review of magazines, gossip mags and other fish wraps consumed me for several minutes. As the line began to evaporate, I was on deck to get checked out and be on my way. I noticed one of my neighbors getting some items. I was looking right at her to see if she would see me and we would exchange hellos. She did not notice me and I did not disrupt her to inform her I was there. Well, I was literally 2ft away from her and noticed when it was time to pay, this married mother of several whips out a Bridge Card. Post double-take turned to anger in my mind since I see this lady every day. Guess what she pulls up into her driveway with? A freaking Cadillac Escalade!!
The other vehicle is a Jeep Commander. 2 SUVs. She does not work either. The real amazing thing about this is they put their house up for sale last year for a few months, then took it off the market and then they brought another child into the world and then got the Caddy and all the while I am confused at all of this. I see her pay with that card that my tax dollars have helped generate and walked out of that store a very pissed off person since this idiot lives on my street, drives a vehicle over 3X the cost of what I drive and had the state cover her $70 of groceries. Man, if that is not working the system, I am not sure what is.

My issue is certainly not with individuals on welfare. I am in full support of having that system, BUT the government should be better equipped to reduce the amount of fraud going on everyday. I know that people sell those cards to get cash and run all kinds of schemes, but I was just amazed at witnessing this episode today. Some people have no shame at all.

Need......summer....now!

Sheesh. I am so tired of cold and snow and snow and cold. I should not be surprised. This is MI, but if there is ever a year I yearn for spring, this is it. Maybe it is because I know M is really wanting to get out there since she looks outside everyday and I can tell she wants to feel the sun on her face and touch the grass. Maybe it is because I am sick of the treadmill and would rather run/walk outside. Maybe it is because I envision caring for my garden and am tired of the inconsistent produce I get at various stores. Whatever it is, I need summer.....I need the sun to bake my skin and I need it now!

How I beat the flu........almost.

At this time last week, I felt it brewing in my bio. Not good. I was not equipped with a flu shot for 2008. I may have gotten 2-3 in my lifetime after high school....as far as I can recall. No reason for not getting one other than I am young and pretty healthy and don't want to steal any supply from the elders and kiddies.
Well, everyone and their mother is sick at my work. I thought I could be strong enough to not get infected since I have not had the flu in years. I frequently wash my hands and avoid as many people who I know are sick as possible. Somehow, doing both of those things did not help me. It hit me hard and I was out two days last week and I should have been out 3. My boss even told me to go home, but I had lots of things to get done and was not trying to be a hero or anything. I just did not want double the fires when I eventually would return. Anyway, I am about 90% at this moment and should the flu hit you, here is my advice:
1. Rest (as in sleep).
2. Consume fluids (as in water that is NOT too cold)
3. Use some Vicks VapoRub on your upper chest and mix in a small towel to promote some heat and concentration of the product.
--OPTIONAL-- 4. If you have sore muscles, nasal congestion and coughing, take a multi-symptom set of over the counter capsules to speed up recovery.

#4 is optional because the flu will run its course if you sleep more and consume liquids. I avoid meds at all cost since the side-effects are not natural.

Good luck to all and may the (IMMUNITY) FORCE be with you.

Language Misfits

I was the unfortunate witness to a conversation at the grocery store the other day. Whole Foods was the scene and two middle aged women were the actors in this play before me. I was there on my lunch hour grabbing a few items. I am not a WF diehard by any stretch, but it's near my work and I get very specific items not found at my other usual spots. I think they have SOME decent products, but primarily they are pretty overpriced, overrated and a marketing juggernaut. Yuppies, vegans and the same people who fill up gyms the first month of every year flood WF for "natural" foods and health products. Anyway, these two women were discussing details of a SuperBowl party they were going to throw. Appetizers were the main subject of the dialog I caught. I had to here them speak of terms like FO-KA-CHI-A (Focaccia) and BRU-SHEDDA (Bruschetta). I am annoyed by many things and improper pronunciation of other languages when spoken with arrogance and pseudo conviction is at the top of that list. I mostly love when many 'merAkin people try and correct me when I pronounce something in regards to food (like Ceviche, Carne Asado or Ricotta to name a few items not native to English) correctly or say, "You say it with an accent." Accent? How about the correct way, you moron! Ethnocentrism is alive and well.....

Killer Side Eye

O better watch it. Hill is giving him the Side-Eye from Hades. There is some pretty fierce radiant heat being projected from her sockets....

Techno-Envy

Man, I wish I was in Vegas right now for CES 2008. It's a geek's paradise! Having followed several different site previews of the show does nothing but make me envious of anyone there.

One day.........one day.

I want one

Asus Eee PC. Sure, it's not for the poweruser tendencies I possess, but the form factor and durability are absolutely perfect for casual web surfing and the lack of harddrive is another plus. This little (7" screen) monster runs on flash memory and comes with a flavor of linux installed. When I get it, I'll keep linux on there and embrace all of the open source apps (open office, firefox and skype as a few examples) it comes with that I am familiar with anyway. You have the ability to install XP on it, but then performance takes a major hit and because this thing will be a true ultra portable, I can use my PC or Mac for other tasks.

I am hyped about getting this thing, but 8G is the top performer right now. I'm waiting for the first few months of 2008 before I get it. I am positive there will be storage, speed and other boosts and hopefully the price does not climb too high.

I'll post a detailed review once I get my hands on it.

The Arabic term for "cover"

I'm pretty sure we have all heard of this story about the Pakistani father who allegedly choked his daughter in Canada due her wearing Western dress to school and not opting for the Hijab that is customary for many Muslim women. At work today, I stopped in the breakroom and the TV was on and this story was being discussed by some talking heads. This is where my reality takes a turn for the ignorant. I was eating a great snack when a person from another department was in there consuming their lunch and heard the news story and said out loud, "That girl is in the US now and should dress like we dress and hijab is a silly name." I looked over at the person and said, "Wow, you are pretty tolerant of other cultures. That silly thing is an Arabic term for cover and it's a scarf that I am sure you have seen worn by Muslim women." This person then said, "So, you think what the father did was OK?" I said, "How do you draw THAT conclusion by me commenting on YOUR comment and saying nothing about the father in this story?" The person says, "Well, if he wants her to dress in that scarf, they should move back to where they came from!" I said, "Are you serious? It's amazing how this "LAND OF THE FREE" we live in only applies to Americans who speak one language and really believe the world is only about the US."

I know the father was 100% wrong for killing his daughter, but the real issue is that this father did not properly deal with a rebellious daughter and lost his mind and now his daughter is dead and he will sit in jail until he dies. My point was that the family in this story has customs that tunnel-visioned Americans think are "stupid" and just because many American kids can step all over their parents and many of the US laws give children WAY TOO MANY rights that the government has no business stepping into, immigrants are to not be judged by what one idiot did because their customs were not being followed.

I suggested this person get some Diversity Training and told them to remember that the US is not the only country in this world and holding on to cultural traditions is a major part of many people's identity when they move to another country for whatever reason. I shook my head and went back to work......

The Med Ball and This Morning....

Let me preface this post by saying that Dub may be the only one who can appreciate it, but I will throw it out to the blogosphere anyway.

Saturday mornings typically involve me going to a friend's house to work out in his basement and yesterday was no different. It's a finished basement with alot of room and since I do work out at home, but I cannot max out at for fear of pinning myself to my bench and having a screaming wife find me in that state. This friend and I are really close in strength levels and that is an important detail since we can spot each other with no issues and are right around plus/minus 5-10lbs for a max on various exercises.

Anyway, we like to mix up the workouts on occasion so we decided to use the 12lb medicine ball that I purchased a few weeks ago. At this point, it's important to mention that we worked shoulders first. We decided on the following 3 different med ball exercises: on knees facing each other about 8 ft from each other, standing about 8ft from each other w/two hand under-arm motion in throwing and seated tossing back/forth kind of rapidly. We did three sets of 30reps. It felt good AFTER, but was tough as we were going through each set since we worked shoulders pretty good. I felt like I had a really intense workout.

Fast-forward to this morning....I wake up and can barely lift my arms above my head. In conjunction with the deltoids work we did, man, the lactic acid was all over my muscle fibers and super-uncomfortable. It's mid-day now and it has somewhat dissipated, but my delts, bis, tris and forearms still feel pretty pumped.

Morale of the story: change up your workouts and do not fear the med ball! Who would have thought that 12lbs would have been the catalyst to a feeling of soreness and a reality of being pumped the next day?