Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111228

Sweets are calling to me. They are convincing me to consume them.

For example, I ate a 12 ounce bag of Hershey dark chocolate "Kisses" within a 48-hour period. I was popping them in my mouth as if they were popcorn, except that I had to remove the foil first.

I did take time to notice lactose and milk fat on the list of ingredients for these candies. I'm not sure how Hershey can get away with calling them "Dark Chocolate" when they add milk products to them.

Waist = 37"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

A Search For Meaning

About a year and a half ago, Kerry wrote about Dr. Viktor Frankl's book, ”Man’s Search for Meaning”. Being the wise-ass that I am, I asked whether it's better to actually find meaning rather than just search for it.

But the more I thought about it, the more I thought that the search may be better than the finding. What if the meaning turns out to be that we're an accident or mistake? Wouldn't it be better to believe that we were lovingly crafted from some All-Powerful Being?

Isn't it better to look at the presents under the tree and wonder what's inside? Or would you rather open them and discover a tie, an ugly sweater, and a fruit cake?


Blessings to you during this holiday season.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111221

This is the time of year that kids get sick. I was wondering what symptoms would require us to keep our daughter home from school. She tends to get a fever that hangs around for nearly a week, and that's a lot of school time to miss and make up.

So I did a search for "when should sick children stay home from school?" and got several reasonable hits.

The consensus seems to be if the child's temperature is over 100.4F, then he or she should stay home. Apparently, she could go to school with a temperature of 99.5F. But her "normal" temperature is 96.8F (as opposed to 98.6) so I wonder about that. Could 99.5F for her be like 101.3 in a child that usually exhibits a normal temperature of 98.6F?

Why is it with me that easy answers lead to more questions? Don't answer that.

Anyway, we'll be sending her off tomorrow with some Advil.

Waist = 37"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Monday, December 19, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111214

I've been experimenting again with coffee. This statement makes it seem as though coffee is a drug. Well, the way I "use" it, coffee is a drug. I use it as a stimulant and anti-depressant. There are worse things that I could take, or so I believe. Perhaps there are better things to take, such as Green Tea and Yerba Mate steeped together?

I'm not sure if it was the 12/7 dinner party that led to the current sweets cravings, or if it's the coffee I'm having. Perhaps the dinner party made me take an interest again in coffee. Or maybe it's just lack of sleep. It could be lack of sleep is leading to both the desire for coffee and for sweets.

All I really know is that I weigh almost five pounds more than a few weeks ago, and I have a greater desire to eat.

Waist = 37"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111207

I haven't heard my wife talk about her Weight Wwatchers meetings -- they quietly dropped off the radar as she has failed to lose weight. Not only that, but she says that I'm too skinny. It doesn't look good that I'm so skinny. She thinks it shows that she isn't a good cook. So I used that comment an excuse to overindulge on peppermint bark flavored chocolate.

Lately I've been enjoying canned sardines. My hands tend to feel warm when I eat them. Maybe they're high in vitamin E. I buy the unseasoned kind that comes packed in olive oil.

Anyway, here are this week's numbers....
Waist = 37"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111130

The traditional Thanksgiving dinner didn't seem to cause me any weight gain even though I had three platefuls of food plus two slices of pie. My stomach was extremely distended and painful for nearly an hour, though.

Waist = 36.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Cat Number Four

My Mother-in-Law had been feeding the cats in her backyard for several months. One of her customers took residence under her porch and produced two kittens. The little Tom was killed when he tried the cross the busy road. So my mother-in-law allowed the little Queen to live inside her enclosed porch. But the porch is unheated, and she couldn't keep the kitten in the main part of the house. So she implored her daughter and granddaughter to adopt her.

My wife drove the cat home three weeks ago. By now we have an established procedure for adopting a new cat. (You can't just let loose a new cat into a home with an established cat population. The existing cat will threaten and possibly attack the newcomer.) We placed the new cat in the laundry room with her own food and water bowls and litterbox. It's not a large area, but it turned out to have a few great spots for hiding. My wife repeatedly asked me to "find" the cat because she (my wife) worried that the cat disappeared. So twice I dragged the cat from remote corners of the laundry room.

Then my wife decided to let the cat into a more comfortable area -- the carpeted part of the basement. Overnight, the cat again "disappeared," but there was a clue as to where she went -- the broken overhead light diffuser indicated that she had gotten into the drop ceiling where she spent the entire next day.

When I got home that night, both my wife and daughter were peering into the drop ceiling trying to locate the cat. They finally lured it out into an open area of the ceiling, so that I was able to remove tiles one-by-one to try to catch it. Eventually the only remaining tile was the one she was sitting on, but she managed to scoot away. At least my daughter saw the direction that the cat took off in, and I located the hiding spot. Finally, I grabbed the cat and dragged it from its spot.

I was very impressed by the cat's good behavior. No, not the shyness and aversion to us moving, living, breathing animals. But it tolerated all my somewhat manly handling without much protest, even though it was clearly terrified.

The cat is now upstairs with us in the Master bedroom and hides under the bed or in the closet. But it does sleep on a small afghan on the floor when we're not around and even cavorts playfully after we go to bed. She will not go on the bed unless my wife picks her up and places her there. Then she will stay for as long as she's being petted or brushed, and then toddles off to her hiding spot.

I don't like to use the flash when photographing cats, but I did in this case. Here she is, peering out at me from under the bed, more fur than flesh:

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Thank You

I have so much to be thankful for. But on this Thanksgiving Day, I want to devote this post to the eight individuals who have signed up to be followers of this blog.

Thank you Kim, JeannetteLS, Jacqueline Hough, Peppermint Twist, shard, Amy Rae, Tirsden Frozenrayn, Tonya0504.

And thank you to all other readers and commenters (or commentators, for all of you fans of English).

Blessings and Joy to you!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111123

I'm giving my diet a lot of slack because last week I weighed less than my minimum target weight range. I just have to make sure I don't rebound too much!

I should be fine tomorrow if I stick with just turkey and vegetables and stay away from the carbs and gravy. I will allow myself a piece of pecan pie.

Waist = 37"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111115

It occurred to me this Tuesday morning to do the weigh-in today, rather than wait for tomorrow and possibly forget.

I'm trying to catch up on sleep -- the one hour switch from Daylight Savings Time to Eastern Standard Time tends to mess my sleep schedule up. Last week I was staying up the extra hour later. But then I'd get a "second wind" and stay up a few hours later. This week I'm ignoring the time and going to bed when I need to.

Waist = 36.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111109

There was no weigh-in last week due to the power outage. So I have created a bogus weigh-in with values that are interpolated from this week and two weeks ago.

It's not that I need electricity to do the weigh-in. Rather, I had other things on my mind. And I didn't feel like stripping down to my tighie-whities to take the measurements. I always weight myself either nude or wearing only briefs to get a consistent reading. Even the fat reading requires bare feet. Standing on cold metal contacts with bare feet in an unheated house is not my idea of fun.

But now things are back to what we refer to as "normal."

Waist = 37.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Monday, November 7, 2011

More Power Outage Ruminations

I had been working outside when the power was restored. I heard a neighbor's generator shut off. Immediately I looked at my house and noticed that the lights were on. I dropped my bow saw and ran up the hill to the house, pulling off my work gloves as I ran.

My first priority was to plug in the well pump motor and then set the circuit breaker for the furnace. But when I got down into the basement, it was so much darker than the outdoors. I couldn't see where the pump's plug was. I turned on my small key-chain flashlight to help me locate the plug and outlet.

Then I opened the breaker panel door, located the furnace breaker and switched it on. I was disappointed that I did not hear the circulating pumps start up. The power was out for so long that the furnace clock reset to midnight, which is programed as a setback period of no heat and hot water. So I would have to open the manual to figure out how to set the time on that furnace.

It wasn't until then that I realized that I didn't need the silly flashlight. I could just turn on the darn light in that room! I had actually forgotten that I could flip a switch to get light! I set the clock on the furnace computer and felt relief that it fired up.

Next I flushed the two toilets. We were running low on water in the bath tub, so it was hard to get enough water in the bucket to do a proper job of flushing. The water in them was dingy, but at least we kept the solid waste down the drain.

Then I went into the kitchen to call my wife (she was on a bus trip to NYC) and then her mother to let them know that we got our power back. Fortunately, my mother-in-law's power was already restored, so she didn't have to make the trip over to our dirty house to shower and warm up.

I spent the next twenty minutes loading the dishwasher, cleaning the sink and cleaning the floor around the pet food dishes. We had put off all this cleaning in order to conserve water. Besides, we had no desire to handle a wet sponge in a cold house for cleaning.

After that, I went back outside to pick up my gloves and bow saw and then cleaned up the remaining loose branches before it got too dark.

I had already thrown out most of the food in the freezer. But there was this one container of bean soup that my wife had put in there just a few days before the outage. I decided to make that my supper, along with some spelt bread toast topped with ghee. I ate in front of the laptop, enjoying the Internet at leisure. I suddenly realized then that I would not be participating in NaBloPoMo this year. (Then again, it's taking place on Blogher. Phooie. I wonder if there's a BlogHim for all us male bloggers? Probably not -- we're too lazy to do something that cool.)

I scooped the cat's litter boxes and eventually took a hot shower after my wife got home.

Ruminations on the Northeast Power Outage

We were without power from 3:52pm on Saturday, 10/29 to 4:15pm Saturday of the next week -- seven full days. The power outage was due to a heavy snowfall that brought many tree limbs down on power lines. The snow collected on deciduous trees whose leaves had still not turned color and fallen. Since the trees were not accustomed to bearing that much weight, they broke. I have never seen such devastation up close in my entire 48 years.

Our home was not damaged. However the fixture atop the lamppost was partly smashed. But worse is that the nice wooded path I blazed many years ago is now blocked by dense tangle of heavy branches.

When we lose electricity, our furnace does not run, so we lose heat and hot water. Of course, we lose lighting, refrigeration and entertainment. Since we have well water, the electric pump would not run, so we also were limited to whatever water had collected in the tank just prior to the outage. We had to limit water use severely. Fortunately, I had prepared by filling the bath tub with water about halfway. This allowed us to fill buckets for flushing the toilets. I also did collect snow melt from a downspout for additional water for flushing. Initially, I hadn't planned to fill the bath tub until just before bedtime. But we lost power for a few minutes prior to the main outage, so I decided to do it earlier as a precaution.

Thank goodness for Chinese restaurants. The place that provided our supper on Sunday was able to cook with propane. We bought the food there and brought it over to the supermarket, which was powered with a generator. We lived like that for most of the remaining days. We were also fortunate that one of our daughter's close friends got power back early and invited us to shower and do laundry, as well as hang out and eat meals there.

This power outage was inevitable. New Englanders are proud and protective of their trees. Roads and power lines were after-thoughts in communities that were founded near Indian footpaths by early settlers. Couple this with a profit hungry power distribution company, and you have countless trees that overhang power lines that run parallel small roads. There are still broken limbs dangling above the restored lines (or lines that haven't been hit yet). Those limbs will come down during a wind storm or the next heavy snow fall.

In Spring, one of our trees broke from gusts of wind. The part that remained stood a few feet from the power lines in front of our house. I called the power company out to have a look at it. I was certain they'd be concerned that it could fall and take down the lines. The representative was tactful in that he himself did not laugh. Instead, he explained that if he were to call in a request to have it removed, they'd laugh at him. "There are a thousand other trees much worse than that one," he said.

But the limbs that fell appeared healthy. And there are dead limbs on our trees that are still intact. So even if the utility had made an effort to remove damaged trees, the power outage would have been just as widespread as it was.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Columcille

Yet another photo from the archives. We've been without electric power for the entire week due to a freak October snow storm that caused many tree limbs to fall. Power only just came on today at about 4:15pm.

So this shot comes from a trip we took to PA about four years ago for a family reunion. We made a mini-vacation of it and also visited Columcille.



Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111102

This is a simulated weigh-in that's interpolated from 2011-10-26 and 2011-11-09....

Waist = 37.125"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111026

The stress has abated somewhat, but I'm still eating some vegetable protein in place of meat.

Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111019

Stress and not as much time to eat lunch at work -- a great combination for weight loss.

Waist = 37.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Airport

I had a shot planned, but then the clouds moved in before I could get close enough and focus. So this is another week for the archives. I found this shot that I took this last year. I posted a companion shot back then.

But I think I like this one better...



Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111012

My tummy is feeling better. I've become a vegetarian temporarily. I'm learning Reiki, and I'm going to get my attunement soon, so I'm supposed to refrain from eating meat and fish.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Wrinkled Towel

This is another one from the archives. Here's our dog's towel, wrinkled and basking in the sun. Cross your eyes a bit and imagine that it's the desolate surface of some alien world.



Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20111005

I'm very surprised that my waist measurement isn't an extra inch or two more than normal. That's what it feels like right now.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Not a Virus

In my latest Weigh-In post, I mentioned that I felt unwell, but that I wasn't sure if it was from a virus or from eating wild mushrooms.

Well, I doubt it's a virus. I sauteed another bowl of Hen of the Woods last night and ate it. Today I have the same bloating, gurgly-guts feeling as before. Perhaps a bit worse. But no worries. I have had far worse symptoms from stomach viruses, so in that sense I'm lucky. On the other hand, the joy of finding something delicious to eat in my own backyard has definitely abated.

I don't have a picture of that particular mushroom that I ate -- it was a lovely specimen. But here's a picture of a Chicken of the Woods we found near our home that we were eating at about the same time...



Haha, silly cat. They pop up when you least expect them, don't they? Okay, let's try that again...



I won't be surprised if my waist measurement is abnormally high for this week's Weigh-In.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Potato Friend

This was taken a couple of years ago, when our daughter was still goofy enough to fool around with Mr. Potato Head.



Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110928

I'm feeling a bit unwell. I'm not sure if it's from a virus or from the frequent servings of wild mushrooms we found in our woods recently.

Waist = 38.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Proteins and EMF

To understand the nature of life one must first understand how protein "machines" are empowered to move.

The final shape, or conformation ... of a protein molecule reflects a balanced state among its electromagnetic charges. However, if the protein's positive and negative charges are altered, the protein backbone will dynamically twist and adjust itself to accommodate the new distribution of charges. The distribution of electromagnetic charge within a protein can be selectively altered by a number of processes including: the binding of other molecules or chemical groups such as hormones; the enzymatic removal or addition of charged ions; or interference from electromagnetic fields such as those emanating from cell phones.1
Bruce Lipton, Ph.D. in "The Biology of Belief"

Find it on Google Books



1 Tsong, T.Y. (1989). "Deciphering the language of cells"

Dream: Robbery Attempt at the Fast Food Place

I'm playing cards with some folks at McDonalds. We're in a closed back room. I hear a customer enter the restaurant, so I break up the game and get the people into position to serve.

The person is a robber. He has a gun. He's a tall male, rounded and has blonde hair. He's wearing a yellow T-shirt. He wants us to stay where we are and keep doing our jobs. He has an accomplice doing the actual robbing. But I feel like we're in a hostage situation.

As customers come in, they, too, are being held captive.

Suddenly, the power goes out, and I immediately seize the opportunity to run out of the building, along with many coworkers. As I'm standing in the dark parking lot, I realize that the power outage was probably orchestrated by one of the workers who knows that you can trip the breaker when you operate two appliances at the same time.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Dream: Birthing Puppies in Hospital Waiting Room

I'm driving around an urban area looking to check myself into a hospital to have a procedure. I had just come from another hospital. I now enter a tiny parking lot of another hospital. The parking lot is in bad shape. The surface is very uneven from frost heave and there are pot holes. I'm afraid I might fall into a sink hole. I decide to leave this place and return to the nicer one that I had come from.

I return to the first hospital and enter it. I navigate through various hallways and common areas until I come to a waiting room that's furnished comfortably like a living room. I especially notice the nice rugs on the floor.

There are people with me, perhaps my mother and sister, or perhaps my wife and daughter. One of these, the wife/mother, points out a lovely dog on the floor. It's on the largest rug. The dog's belly is swollen. I look up in surprise, and the wife/mother confirms that the dog is pregnant. In fact, it's about to give birth.

I hold my hand under the dog's bottom. Out pops a red mass of tissue -- the after birth. I let it roll out of my hand and wait for a puppy. One pops out, but it's still. I set it down. Another two come out. They are larger and more robust.

I look in my hand at the last one, but it's actually a small pack of dark blue tissues. I turn my attention to the first pup, which I initially thought was dead. There is life in it, and as I hold it and stroke it, it seems to revive.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110922

My wife is again on Weight Watchers. So I expect to be losing weight again. I won't mind losing about five pounds. But any more and my pants will be too loose!

Waist = 37.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Advice for Warriors

Mapleshade was sitting a tail-length away. "A warrior doesn't daydream," she growled.

"How did you know?"

"You lost your focus a moment before you reared," she told him. "I could see it in your eyes. Your thoughts were on a battle in your head. You must fight the battle you're in, not the one you could be in."

- from Warriors Super Edition: Crookedstar's Promise, by Erin Hunter (page 118)

Dream: Cafeteria Signs at the Open House

I'm at my daughter's school at night for the Open House. It's at the halfway point. I'm in the hallway near the principal, vice-principal and a few teachers. I see that they're already taking down the signs that they put up earlier for the benefit of parents. The morning teachers have no more classes to meet parents at. They will be going home soon. I walk away.

I'm walking down a staircase. I'm at the halfway point where the stairs split at a landing and reverse to the other direction. As I turn right to get to the other half of the stairs, I see a large sandwich board sign that has directions to the cafeteria. I get the idea to help the teachers remove the signs, So I pick up the sign and remove some other signs taped on the walls.

I continue following my daughter's schedule, and then suddenly realize that the signs that I took down are still needed. There are lunch periods yet to take place. My watch indicates 1:15pm. There's a lunch period starting right now, in fact. So I must put the signs back. It's too late to put them back for the current period. So I take my time and take a longer route to get back to that spot.

Dream: Pink Worm in Planter

I have a small plant growing in an unusual planter. It's made up of an inner pink plastic pot that's enclosed in a cube-like outer housing that's clear. I know that there's a pink worm among the roots. I see that the worm is going through the drainage hole of the inner pot and then working it's way up between the inner pot and outer square-shaped enclosure. I'm not concerned until I see that the worm has found an opening in the corner of the outer part of the planter. It's coming out of the planter.

I pull it out all the way. It's about 18" to 24" long depending on how it stretches itself. It's also translucent.

I call the grey cat over since he's nearby. He walks over right away. I drop the worm over his back. I half expect him to run away scared. But instead he finds one end of the worm and eats it. Now I wonder if it's safe for him to eat. What if it's poisonous and kills him? But no, I reason. If it were poisonous, it would be bitter or smelly, and he would instinctively know to avoid it.

Dream: Alligator in Catch Basin

I'm taking a brief stroll in my yard before suppertime. I walk down the hill and I notice that the grassy ground is squishy, water-logged from all the rain from Irene and the storm that followed. I look to my right to see how high the water is in the catch basin. But it doesn't seem to be that much higher than usual.

Now I'm walking back, having walked past the catch basin. It's about 100 yards away to my left. There is some creature in the water. A large creature. It resolves into a fully-grown alligator. But there is also a man there with a leash. Apparently the alligator is his. I hear two people talking behind me. They are walking toward me, so I hold up my hand to get them to warn them and get them to slow down and turn around. I know them, so I say high. They catch up to me.

An aircraft flies low overhead. Then it slows and circles around. I wonder if the pilot is looking for the alligator. Now it is hovering nearby.

We walk on together and come to a clearing. The pilot of the aircraft is there, and he is, indeed, searching for the alligator. One of the people that were walking is with the nearby Nature Center. She is wearing shoes with pointy heels -- most inappropriate for the walk she was taking.

Before us is a bridge to Hartford, which we can take to get back. We want to walk forward, but I suddenly realize that it's a bridge of water! I'm not interested in swimming across, so I hold back.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110914

Same as last week. It's been so busy at work, I've been skipping my lunch-time walk sometimes. And I've been staying up late to read more. So I'm tired. As a result, my legs ache, and I have cravings at night. Perhaps next week's weigh-in will be higher.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110908

Sometimes I forget to weigh myself on Wednesday, so I do the weigh-in on Thursday. When that happens (as it did today) I'll put the actual date of the weigh-in, but I'll still title the post "Wednesday."

In other news, I saw the sun today!

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Stream

Captured this while on a hike in our favorite nature preserve....



Thursday, September 1, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110831

Thought I'd be a tad lighter from hurricane Irene. There was the rush to bring things indoors or anchor them down, the frenzy of cleaning out the gutters (in the rain, no less), and finally the waiting out of the storm without electricity with minimal eating and drinking.

We fared well over all. We were without power for 20 hours, and some water seeped into the finished part of the basement. My main worry was that our tall pines might get knocked over, but the wind wasn't too bad.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Dream: Single Mom with Precocious Child

[I had this dream several days ago, but it still stays with me.]

I'm in a large department store or supermarket. I ask myself out loud, "Where am I?"

I hear a little voice answer, "If you pay me, I'll tell you."

I see a small girl, so small she appears as a toddler. She's adorable, with a cute smile. I smile back and say, "What expense would you incur that you'd need to be reimbursed for?" But that's clearly way too advanced, because I find myself explaining the concept of getting reimbursement and receipts and invoices.

An attractive woman shows up with an older, teen/tween girl. I presume she's the girl's mother and the teen the sister. She's got short brown hair and a very friendly smile, very much like Maggie O'Connell of Northern Exposure.

Somehow I find out that her husband died recently. I feel an overwhelming attraction to this woman, but I remember that I am married and don't try to flirt or otherwise engage her.

Then we're outside in a park-like setting, but on the edge of a parking lot. She is sticking out of the open hood of a car that's parked there. Only her head a shoulders are visible. I decide to kiss her, but she is weak and dizzy. I presume it's from carbon monoxide from the car engine. She swoons and sinks into the car.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110824

Allergy season is upon me. This motivates me to avoid dairy, ice cream in particular. Little amounts (like in chocolate) don't seem to bother me too much, though.

Also, I'm starting to pick off a leaf of kale from our garden each morning. I cut it up and add it raw to my Romaine lettuce salad for lunch. The leaves are fairly small (wallet-sized) and very tender.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110817

I've been drinking herbal tea at night after supper in response to cravings for ice cream or other snacks.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110811

Drop in weight and reduced waist size. Could that be because we ran out of bananas, so I didn't eat the usual two per day for a few days? Or is it because I've been adding carob powder to my breakfast? Or maybe it was just the stress from my wife's recent pain crisis?

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110803

My weight and fat are the same this week, but my waist is a half inch larger!

Waist = 38.75"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Monday, August 1, 2011

Weak Dishwasher Detergent

About a year ago I noticed that our dishwasher wasn't cleaning very well. My white ceramic mug was the canary in the coalmine. It would always come out gleaming white. But when the "after" tea stains were indistinguishable from the "before," I figured something was wrong.

First, I suspected the water temperature. It was early fall with summertime weather, and the boiler temperature runs lower in the summer. I tried adding boiling water after each drain cycle a couple of nights in a row. I was amazed that that did not help.

I then suspected the dishwasher. First I made sure the little door for the detergent was opening. In fact, I actually ran it once without closing it just to be sure. When that didn't help, I took out the lower spray arm and checked that the filter was not clogged. It was not clogged.

I had resigned myself to calling an appliance repair shop when I heard NPR do a story about how dishwashing detergents were reformulated to remove phosphates. As a result, a lot of people's dishes and glasses were not getting clean.

So I did like Sandra Young and bought TSP from the hardware store. After I started adding about 1 teaspoon to the regular detergent, things returned to normal.

I really don't like to fool around with the dishwasher. We wash our cats' food dishes in it. We also rely on it to clean our cutting boards, mixing bowls (coated with the residue of batter and dough that was made with raw eggs). We do use the "Accu Temp" feature that heats the water if it's too cool, but I like having a good detergent that will get everything off of everything.

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Legitimate Credit Monitoring Offer or ...?

Breaches in consumer account data are prevalent. Unless you're a child or live on the street and use only cash for everything, you probably received a notice from a lien holder that its data was broken into. Your notice might include a free offer of credit monitoring. All you have to do to accept this free offer is to navigate to a website and enter every last bit of personal information you have.

"Yeah right," you think to yourself, or you should.

Certainly I knew that Countrywide bank, with whom I had a mortgage, had data stolen several months ago. But how could I ascertain whether the offer of free credit monitoring was just another scam, a bit of clever social engineering? I called the phone number, which was answered by a pleasant-sounding female voice recording. She identified ConsumerInfo as an Experian company. But anyone could take out a toll-free number and find a pleasant-sounding female to record.

I decided to go directly to the Experian website instead. I was familiar with them, since I occasionally get a free credit report from them every three months or so. I searched the site and found this reassuring FAQ result1:
Dear Experian,

I received a letter about an incident with an archive tape being lost with critical data. The letter offers a free subscription to Triple Alert. The site does ask for a Social Security number, birth date, etc. The letter provides a number to verify the issue, but how can I verify it separate from the letter?

- BAR

Dear BAR,

-snip-

Your question is a very good one. Here are a few tips for verifying the information for contacting Experian is legitimate:

* Look closely at the Web address provided in your notification letter. Experian owns and operates several different Web sites that provide consumers with credit monitoring products. The following Web addresses are legitimate Experian Web sites:
o partner.consumerinfo.com
o partner.experiandirect.com

Please note that there may be other information after the “.com” part of the address. This other information also is legitimate and is no cause for concern.

And so I signed up for the service rather than let the offer lapse as I've done two other times.

Perhaps this will help you figure out whether to accept your offers.



1 http://www.experian.com/ask-experian/20080709-ensuring-security-breach-notices-are-legitimate.html

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110728

I think I might've lost weight over the weekend. I was involved in a painting project to paint my daughter's room. With that activity, plus the fact that it was too hot to cook, and with my food-providing wife away, I would eat tiny meals just to stave off starvation.

But if I did lose weight, it all came back plus one pound. I guess the eating binge I went on as a reward might be responsible for that.

Waist = 38.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110720

No change from last week -- very strange.

I once underwent a physical for a life insurance policy. The nurse asked my weight, so I said "160 plus or minus five pounds." She mentioned that it wasn't a good sign if your weight changes a lot. I let the matter drop, but I thought she was clueless. There are a lot of factors that determine weight even assuming you're not trying to gain or lose weight. They are hydration (you can weigh five pounds less just due to strenuous exercise), seasonal effects, scale accuracy, whether you've, um, voided fully. Then you have athletes who have their training & competition weight versus their "off-season" weight.

So anyway, I was thoroughly astounded this morning to find that my three numbers this week are identical to the previous set of numbers.

Waist = 38.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110714

Yesterday I ordered Chinese food from the "steamed" portion of the menu. I got the beef with broccoli, and they gave me a choice of sauce. I asked for red pepper sauce (because I think that's mostly just red pepper flakes in oil) but they didn't have that, so they gave me spicy garlic sauce. I didn't care what they gave me -- it was provided "on the side" (in a separate container).

The plain beef and broccoli tasted fine on its own, so I never did bother to use the sauce.

I'd love to have them make Hunan Beef without adding flour or corn starch (or food coloring) to the sauce. I realize that it would be thin and runny, but I wouldn't mind because then I wouldn't feel sleepy afterward.

Waist = 38.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Green Tea Electrolyte Drink

Lately I've been drinking a new concoction -- a Green Tea Electrolyte drink.

First I prepare the Green Iced Tea by adding 10 green tea bags to 1 gallon of water. I also add several mint leaves that I tear into small pieces. Let that steep in the refrigerator overnight. If you don't have fresh mint, you can use Tazo Zen tea bags. It's great tea, but a lot more expensive. (I buy my green tea bags in a box of 100 for about $5.25.) Or you can use your favorite herbal tea for a caffeine-free version. The mint leaves and tea bags will usually float, so it's easy to remove them after it's done steeping.

Pour a glassful of the steeped green iced tea and add pinch of sea salt, lemon juice and sugar or agave nectar. I use nearly 1/4 teaspoon of salt and three teaspoons of sugar and the juice from about 1/4 lemon.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

SDP: Goop for Ceramic Stove Tops

My dad was a machinist. I recall that he had something called Goop that he could put on his hands before work so that when they got dirty, they'd be easier to clean. It was a sort of protective film for his hands, like an infinitesimally-thin, dissoluble glove.

Ceramic stove tops are the most difficult things in the kitchen to clean. The microscopically rough surface of the ceramic makes liquids soak in and bind, leaving a residue that's nearly impossible to remove. Even water leaves a stain!

Amazing how the manufacturers of these stoves market them as being easy to clean. The old range top we had was easy to clean. I'd just wipe the enamel-painted surface with a wet sponge and it looked like new in about five seconds. Now we need to apply a special, expensive stove top cleaner and scrape with a razor!

My idea is to create a Goop-like film that could be applied to the stove top so that it would repel spills, or at least make them easier to remove.

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110706

I'm walking more again, so that might be helping keep my weight from escalating.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110629

Yikes, I'm outside my target range of 155lb to 165lb!

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Friday, June 24, 2011

Animal Personality Test

My result for The Animal Personality Test ...

Beaver

I scored 44% Otter, 25% Lion, 75% Beaver, and 47% Golden Retriever!

"How was that done in the past?"

You're a beaver. Beavers tend to be intellectually busy, always questioning why things are the way they are, and how stuff works. You think logically, and tend to be less emotional. You may be very organized, putting things where you know you'll be able to find them later, or use an "inner filing system" to record experiences. Beavers like to take things apart... and take people apart as well, making them some of the toughest critics. They set high standards for others, and themselves.

In relationships, beavers are advised to avoid the spontaneous, risk taking otter. They don't always understand each other very well. Instead, they are advised to pair up with a laid back Golden Retriever or an adventurous Lion.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110623

I sometimes have trouble with dandruff in the winter. But this year, the problem never went away. I still have a problem with it.

Then today I realized the connection between the dandruff and the fact that we stopped eating fish for dinner in January, which is when our daughter adopted a vegan diet. Some healthy fish oil is just the thing to improve the condition of my scalp.

Oh, and yes, I do know that today is Thursday. But artistic license allows me to keep using the post title of "Wednesday Weigh-In."

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

End of School -- Start of Summer

Today is the start of Summer in the Northern Hemisphere. And it's also the last day of school for our daughter.

She had trouble with math this year. She was supposed to be placed in the advanced math program, but someone messed up, and she was put in the regular math program. After a few days, things got straightened out, and she got put into the advanced class, but by then she was already behind. And each few days that she was out sick, she fell behind more.

We decided to have her take the regular math program next year. Half of the material will be review for her. I want to make sure she gains math skill over the summer or at least not lose anything. So I've decided to give her Daily Math Problems, which, if she solves them correctly, will get her excused from scooping out the four litter boxes.

The first problem is to identify the quadratic expressions (from a group of ten) that factor into squares like this:

(x + a)(x + a)

She's actually pretty good at factoring since it's algorithmic. But the trick here is to do it efficiently. I want her to realize that she doesn't have to factor all ten expressions. Instead, she should realize that only the expressions with a constant a * a need to be tested.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110615

I've been feeling more hungry lately. I can feel that way at work if I'm not mindfully engaged. Also, caffeine can bring about an increase in hunger. Even the caffeine in green tea can have an effect.

I'm also tired from waking up at 4:00am. I fall right back to sleep after I realize how early it is, but I think it would be better if we weren't on Daylight Savings Time. Then I'd consider getting up at 5:00am and going to bed earlier.

Waist = 38.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110608

I haven't had time to make breakfast sausages, so I've been eating oat bran for breakfast a few days per week. And I've been adding carob powder to my almond butter on toast and stopped putting blueberries on it.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Wisteria Blooming on Trellis

Here's another shot of a wisteria, but this one is blooming!



Thursday, June 2, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110601

I plan to start eating sausages for breakfast again. That should help me lose a few pounds. I'd like to get back down to 160.

Waist = 38.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110526

I seem to be gaining weight again. Hopefully it's only because I've skipped my lunchtime walk all last week due to all the rain we've been experiencing.

My other theory is that I'm eating more vegan / vegetarian dishes, so that ratio of carbs to protein in my diet has been higher.

If you think that's crazy, just reflect on how some people shed tens of pounds on the Atkins diet. If I want to maintain weight, I need to keep the ratio of carbs to protein from increasing.

Waist = 38.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110519

This week I'm fighting against ice cream and no walks (mostly due to bad weather and the need to do work more in less time). I said "no" to Chinese food last night, but then I got take out for lunch today. Hunan Beef with Black Bean sauce. And now I'm fading...

Waist = 37.75"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110511

I love Chinese food. But when I saw my wife put together a recipe last week, I realized that I should avoid it. On the surface it would seem okay -- beef, vegetables and rice are all good things on the Blood Type Diet. But when I look more carefully, I realize that the sauce is nearly poisonous. It most likely has wheat, corn starch, food coloring, sugar or corn syrup, and flavor enhancers. From now on I may have to order the steamed dishes they offer for dieters.

The motivation behind this switch is not just to stick to the diet. It's to eliminate the reaction I get after eating the stuff -- the brain foggy stupor I sink into.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Frisbie-Catcher

This week's shadow is cast by an artwork by Cow Parade called "Daisy's Dream."



Thursday, May 5, 2011

Keeper of the Brain

On Saturday I attended my first meeting of the Council of the Whistling Elk. One of our activities was Lynn Andrews' Keeper of the Brain meditation.

The idea is to meet and talk with the being in our brain who wishes to protect us but, in so doing, sometimes limits us in some way.

Here's a summary of my experience.

First of all, my brain is quite a vast, vacant place! And dark.


The being that appeared didn't approach me. It instead materialized slowly. And all I ever saw was the head. It seemed scared of the intensely dramatic music and would fade away as the music swelled. When the tape went silent at the halfway point, the head became permanent.

This was a small head, with short dark brown hair, large dark brown eyes and very pale face -- a young boy, perhaps. His eyes were open wide with a mixture of wonder and fear, it seemed. His name came to me as Brian, so I have a Brian in my Brain. And a head in my head.

His message to me was this: stick to the diet.

It's very motivating to have the Keeper of one's Brain telling one to stick to one's diet.

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110504

It turns out that I didn't take any ice cream or cake last week at the celebration for a coworkers 80th birthday. The only ice cream flavors offered were vanilla, chocolate, Cherry Garcia and sherbet. That's not proper temptation!

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Doorknob

One of the crystals in the window has projected its rainbow light onto the doorknob for this week's shot.




Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110427

All the cookies, ice cream and jelly beans that I've been eating have spiked my numbers. Both weight and waist measurements are up.

Tomorrow will bring another opportunity to increase even more -- a company-wide ice cream treat to celebrate a coworker's 80th birthday, featuring Ben and Jerry's ice cream!

O
M
G

I'm doomed.

Hopefully they'll have just plain vanilla and chocolate, and not those irresistibly decadent flavors such as Phish Food, Chubby Hubby or Fossil Fuel.

Waist = 38.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Dream: Driving the Very Tall Truck

It's night time. I'm in a parking lot, walking to my car. I drive a green Subaru station wagon, but the car that I'm approaching is actually a green van.

I'm now sitting in the driver's seat. It's so tall that I can't see anything down on the road directly in front of me, like people. I feel as though I'm looking down from the second or third floor of a building.

I approach the parking lot's exit to the road. There are people wearing bright safety gear -- yellow jumpsuits and orange reflective vests. They appear to be acting as crossing guards. I'm afraid that I will run them over, so I go very slowly across the road.

Dream: The ATV

I'm outside facing the road. I notice that a yellow vehicle is racing down the road from my right to my left.

At first I think that this is an emergency vehicle responding to a call because of how fast it's going and how it's crossing the centerline of the road. But when it runs into a grassy divider, I realize that it's an All Terrain Vehicle (ATV).

Another car approaches from the opposite direction and makes a left hand turn. I anticipate a crash, but the ATV stops on the divider just in time to avoid the crash.

The ATV now is driving in circles counter-clockwise on the circular median. It's going incredibly fast, digging into the grass and dirt. In fact, it is digging a huge hole about 30 feet in diameter. When it gets about 20 feet down, it stops. How will it get out? It climbs very slowly up the dirt wall that it made, seemingly cautious in case there are any cars or pedestrians nearby.

Finally out of the hole, the driver dismounts, and he takes a bow to an applauding audience.

Dream: Newborn Twins

I'm in bed. My wife is sleeping next to me. She's holding two newborn babies, one for each arm. Their eyes are wide open, but they are quiet. I don't remember my wife being pregnant.

[Yesterday, I had read the section in Jaguar Woman in which Lynn meets her "Twin Dreamers"]

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110420

It's ice cream season in our household. Unfortunately, our daughter is vegan, so the ice cream that my wife buys doesn't disappear as quickly as it used to.

Weirdly, the Ben & Jerry's "Imagine Whirled Peace" doesn't taste as good as I remember it. I didn't eat it last night because I craved it. I took it for emotional soothing -- earlier in the day we sent cat number four to kitty heaven.

Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110413

I found a dandelion plant that sheltered under an evergreen over the winter. So I've been adding some of its leaves to my lunch time salad.

Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Friday, April 8, 2011

SDP: Search Engine Owners Can Harvest Ideas

It occurred to me to do an Internet search to see if anyone was marketing and selling hand-held Geiger Counters to food shoppers, using the fear of a breach at the Fukushima nuclear power plant as motivation.

Then it hit me -- those who operate Internet search engines are the first to learn about new ideas.  Why?  Because as soon a someone thinks of inventing or developing something like a Bluetooth-enabled Geiger Counter, he or she would perform a search to see if anyone else has already done that, thereby giving the idea to the search engine.

SDP: Hand-Held Geiger Counter for food shopping

I see a fantastic business opportunity coming from concerns about a breach at the Fukushima nuclear plant -- a hand-held or Bluetooth-enabled Geiger Counter for your Smartphone!  All health-conscious food shoppers should have them to detect radiation in foods before they make a purchase.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110406

Last night I had pizza. The way I eat pizza is that I pick the cheese and toppings off with a fork and eat that, and then I discard the entire crust.

Waist = 37.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Farmhouse & Barn

Here are two shadows I captured during my lunchtime walk: an awning frame on a farmhouse, and a tobacco barn.




Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110329

What if thoughts could be weighed? Then I suppose part of a weight loss program would be to empty the mind.

I wonder if the thought of thoughts having weight could have increased this week's weigh-in number a whopping three pounds over last week's number?

I guess the real lesson is that Maple Syrup soda might be no better than ordinary soda for maintaining weight. There was also the two beers I had at a birthday party on Saturday that might've contributed to the increase....

Waist = 37.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday First Crocus

Today's shot is in celebration of Spring! It's our first flower, a dependable little crocus that pops itself up every year.



Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110323

My latest fun thing is to make Maple Syrup soda. I simply coat the bottom of a glass with 100% Maple Syrup (about 2 tablespoons) and then slowly pour in seltzer from a height of about four to six inches above the rim of the glass. You get a nice soda replacement with a sweet foamy head.

Both Maple Syrup and seltzer are favored on my SWAMI diet. If you're Blood Type O, they might be for you, too.

BTW, I goofed on the title of my previous weigh-in post. I put the date as 3/26 instead of 3/16.


Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110316

I was hoping that when daylight savings time came, I'd wake up at the correct time, rather than wake up an hour earlier as I had been doing. Unfortunately, I've started waking up even an hour earlier!

Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Dream: Dog Operating Theatre

My wife and I are in a prison. The room is not a jail cell, though. It's more like an examination room, as if we're waiting to be processed. My wife is saying that she's getting (electrical) shocks from (touching) things. Then the lights go out, and I realize that there may be a serious electrical problem. The wiring may be reversed so that the ground is energized.

I tell my wife to stand in the center of the room, away from any metal objects. I raise my hands over my head and spread my fingers like tree branches and feel a tingling in my fingers. Yes, we're energized. I squat down and curl myself into a small ball and tell my wife to do the same. This will minimize the surface area and prevent discharges.

But I also realize that we have to get out. I don't want us to be left inside when everyone else evacuates. At first I'm afraid to upset my wife and start panic. But then I shout, "Let us out!" I stand up and walk to a window. I see prison guards and workers walking past the window. I wave and shout, trying to catch their attention.

Finally, someone comes for us and let's us out. We have total freedom, but we don't go too far from the guards and other workers. We walk with them to another wing of the building.

Now we have our dog with us, and he needs an operation. There is an operating room being set up. All around the perimeter of where the room will be, there is a burgundy tarp placed on ground / floor, which is green like grass. The tarp will be raised to form a wall before the operation begins. An operating table is in the center of this large area.

The dog is now on the table with a light blue paper blanket covering him. During the operation, the doctor will inject him with electricity. A nurse is near me looking outside. She starts counting quietly 1... 2... 3. Thunder cracks the air. Now the nurse has a stopwatch and she's timing the lightening and thunder. I'm very concerned. Are they really going to attempt this operation during a lightening storm? Or is that how the operation is performed, like some sort of Frankenstein operation?

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110309

I'm going through a new batch of lamb & turkey breakfast sausages...

Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

A Medicine Woman's Words

“Envy and the need to control others is where witchcraft and sorcery are hatched.”

“The squirrel is very wise. Two-leggeds have learned from him over the centuries. He knows the turn of the season wheels and he collects food and prepares for winter. The squirrel knows many things about food that humans have yet to learn. They are familiar with tree spirits and tree magic. They know secret places of power, places that radiate with enough power to drive the human crazy. They know of invisible places and will bring the love of one tree for another.”

- Agnes Whistling Elk, in "Flight of the Seventh Moon," by Lynn Andrews.

Friday, March 4, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110303

I actually weighed myself on Thursday, even though it says "Wednesday" and I'm posting on Friday.

Oh yes, if anyone wanted to make a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster using ingredients sourced only from Earth, I'm sure it would contain the juice or extract of kumquats.

Waist = 37.5"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Cat Belly

Cat number two works on his tan...

...right near the dog...


Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110223

I'm still on that reading binge that I wrote about last week.

Waist = 37.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Bridge to the Beyond

Most of humanity tries to huddle in secure domains. Yet there are always those few we call walkers on the edge, or rim. They are searching for a bridge that leads over the river. There are many bridges. Some of these are masked under the name of religion. Yoga is a bridge. Sufism is a bridge. In the end there is only one bridge to follow, and that is the bridge of love. That bridge is the singular way to span into the beyond. Ultimately that is the one that gets us all there. When you experience the unexpected and the unprecedented in your life, follow your heart. It's the one sure path that leads to safety.
- Zoila in Star Woman: We Are Made from Stars and to the Stars We Must Return, by Lynn V. Andrews

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110216

I'm on a reading binge, and to fuel that, I'm also back to eating snacks at night to try to stay awake later than I should. Also, last week I drank some coffee. So my appetite is up. I'm surprised I don't weigh more.

Waist = 37.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Shadow Shot Sunday Cat Number Four

Please say hello to Cat Number Four, whom we adopted last week.



Saturday, February 12, 2011

Prayer for Lost Items

While reading Doreen Virtue's Archangels and Ascended Masters, my wife came across several interesting prayers.

"Did you know there's a prayer for lost items?" she asked.

"That's nice," I responded with disinterest.

Undeterred she asked, "Did you ever lose anything?"

"Yeah, my brains."

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110209

We visited the cat shelter on Saturday and came home with yet another cat to add to our pride.

Waist = 37.0"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110203

I've been trying to get to bed early because I've been waking up so early.

I'll be glad when we switch back to Daylight Savings Time.
Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Attention Deficit Disorder Quiz

Results of My Attention Deficit Disorder Quiz: 58
You appear to be suffering from a moderate amount of attention and concentration difficulties according to your responses to this self-report questionnaire. You should not take this as a diagnosis of any sort, or a recommendation for treatment. However, it would be advisable and likely beneficial for you to seek further diagnosis from a trained mental health professional soon to rule out a possible attention disorder.

Moderate ADHD Likely

Monday, January 31, 2011

Blind Color Sensing with Feng Shui

My daughter was trying to decide what color we should paint her room. We embarked on a strange method based on our limited or faulty understanding of Feng Shui.

Somehow we determined that her element is Fire and that Red would give her energy. She also remarked that my element is Water and that Blue would give me energy. We also figured that Fire and Water are antagonists -- that which is good for Fire is bad for Water, and vice-versa. This isn't entirely correct, but it's what led to the experiment that I shall describe next.

We happened to have paint chips in a variety of blue and pink. So I reasoned that if Blue was good for me and Red was bad for me, I should be able to tell them apart with my eyes closed just by feeling them. I already had a pink chip, so I handed it back to my daughter and asked her to pick a blue chip, and then hand them both to me.

I closed my eyes and took the two chips. I could tell the pink chip from the blue right away. But I cheated. First, the pink chip featured four sections in different shades of pink, and the blue chip had six. I could feel the transitions between those sections, so I could tell which was the pink. As well, we had been handling the pink chip, so it developed a gentle bend, whereas the blue chip was perfectly flat. That was another way I could tell them apart. But I also noticed something very subtle -- something that occurs when I eat foods that are borderline "avoids" on my diet. I sensed a foggy-achiness in a part of my head when I handled the pink chip. And I felt some clarity when I handled the blue chip.

My daughter was impressed that I identified the chips correctly. I didn't tell her about my cheating right way. But after she tried the test herself and identified incorrectly, she had a laughing-crying spell, so I told her then. And besides, I had a 1 in 2 chance of guessing correctly.

Actually, she refused to try to guess, initially. I pressured her to try, and she eventually gave in. I think she might've released some pent up emotion by tapping into some inner part of her unexplored self.

She wanted me to guess again. This time she selected two new chips that I hadn't seen or handled before, both with the same number of color sections. I got rid of the pink place mat that was in front of me and I took off my burgundy sweatshirt. (But then I was left with blue T-shirt and pants.) Then I closed my eyes and took them from her. I handled one. I didn't sense anything from it. I put it down and took the other. I didn't sense anything from that one either. I put it back down and picked up the first. I shifted it to my left hand, and then I got that foggy-achiness sensation again. I held it up and said, "This is the pink chip." And I was right. Cool. Still, picking 1 of 2 choices correctly twice in a row can be done 25% of the time just by guessing randomly.

I wanted to check the Feng Shui table of elements and favorable directions, so we went online. I verified mine. But when checking my daughter's element, we got Earth from a table on one site, and Wood from another site! And then we realized that Metal supports Water while Wood destroys it. So we figured that Black (for Water) and Gray (for Metal) are favorable colors for me. And the Black cat is my favorite and likes me best. We also figured that my daughter is Earth based on her cat choices. She is attracted to the orange cat (Red/Fire creates ash that feeds Earth), and the gray tabby is attracted to her (the Gray Metal comes from Earth).

It turns out that Pink is the color for Earth anyway, so that's what we decided to paint her room. It just so happens that her room is already pink, but it wasn't painted well. The painter put two coats on the wall, but he didn't let it dry between coats, so the yellow that was there before seems to bleed through a little. So it needs to be repainted, and I can probably do just one coat this time.

Anyway, I wonder, did I really sense the difference between a favorable color and an antagonistic color? Let me know if you try this for yourself and what result you get.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110126

I've sampled some new products while helping my daughter adopt a vegan diet. Earth Balance buttery spread is amazingly delicious. But this product, along with other soy-based substitutes for animal-derived foods, clearly is not for me.

I searched for a compatible diet for all of my adult life and finally found one that works, the Blood Type Diet (BTD). I'm not going to throw that away to become vegan. Yet within the BTD, dairy is an "avoid" as in the vegan diet, and I can create some beneficial meals that require no animal-derived products.

Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Wednesday Weigh-In 20110120

Last week's low weight reading of 157.5lb was definitely due to water lost due to sweating while shoveling snow. As you can see, I'm back to normal this week!

Waist = 37.25"
Height = 5' 9"

References:
  1. Wikipedia BMI page
  2. Tanita Scale with Body Fat monitor
  3. Javascript must be enabled to view the data.

Monday, January 17, 2011

On Healing, Artists, and Regaining Control

"...it is what you choose not to observe in your life that controls your life."

- Butterfly Woman
from "Jaguar Woman and the Wisdom of the Butterfly Tree," Lynn V. Andrews

...your culture doesn't support its artists. Your culture accepts only the great nurturing matriarch, the type of woman who grows the corn and raises children. These women love routine, get married, raise their children, and generally have a much easier time than their rainbow sisters. While the Rainbow Mothers are frustrated, unfulfilled, and perhaps alcoholics because of the expectations of others, the Great Mothers are the pillars of society. Until they reach midlife, that is. Then they find that their children are grown, and there is no one to nurture. At that point, their opposite energy, Death Mother, comes close and tries to take them away.
- Zoila
from "Jaguar Woman and the Wisdom of the Butterfly Tree," Lynn V. Andrews

Sylvia Browne on the Healing Process...
Anyone can heal, but advanced souls often do it with more strength than others do, and they can even see faster results. Yet if you're not a mystical traveler, I don't want to discourage you from healing because you *can* absolutely do a transfer of energy.

Make sure you begin by surrounding yourself and the person you're healing with white light, and then thread green light through his or her body. Next, you can follow the very simple process that the ministers of Novus Spiritus do after every service. They wait until after the service is over and stand behind those who want healing, who are seated. If the minister is female, she simply puts her right hand on top of the person's head, and then places her left hand over that. If it's a male minister, the hands are reversed -- his left hand would be on top of the individual's head, and his right hand would go over that.

This signifies and recognizes the left and right sides of the brain, and how they typically work with the sexes: Males generally operate from the left sides of their brains, while females tend to be dominated by the right sides of their brains. However, this can be individually different, so you might want to experiment to see which hand placement works better for you.

After the placement of hands, the ministers surround both themselves and the people being healed with the white light of the Holy Spirit, and then they ask that they become tubes by which God's energy flows through to heal those who need it and can benefit from that energy. It's as simple as that, and very effective. Our ministers have had great success in healings, and men and women invariably stand up in our churches to relate that they feel 100 percent better.

You don't have to pay for lessons in healing unless you're going to become a doctor... or the like. It's always baffling to me when people who do holistic or faith healing follow rituals or ritualistic practices and over complicate it. Our Parents know what we need -- we're all Their children and have the power to channel Their energy. Thus, we don't have to explain ourselves and what we're doing to Them.

Healers don't even have to necessarily know where an illness is, for they're just the vehicles that Mother and Father God's grace and healing energy comes through, with no effect on them. There's no ego involved, for They are the Ones doing the healing. Everyone can do this, although it's true that some may be better at it than others. However, the more you do it, the better you'll get at it, whether you're a mystical traveler or not.
- from "Mystical Traveler," Sylvia Browne

Edited on 2011-02-22 to add links to quoted books.