Long day finally over

Phew! So much for a Memorial Day weekend, huh? We had to paint all these 4' x 12' panels white, some front and back. We worked from about 8:30am to 4pm, taking an hour break at 1pm for lunch. We've done this in the past, but it was especially longer because we had to do both sides of the panels.

It's funny how I dread weekends due to such labor, and before I know it, we're done!

Well, off to take a shower, then party at Javy's house for his graduation celebration, plus we're gonna watch UFC 60: Hughes vs. Gracie – crazy!

Attain understanding

I'm going through some major struggles in my life right now. Without being specific about the situation, it's definitely been a roller-coaster.

The names will be changed to protect their identity while I'm dealing with this whole matter.

One of my friends, George, felt I was seeking advice from someone who he thought might lead me the wrong way. I'd like to think I'm a logical person, so all I'm trying to do is to make sure that my logic is correct. Bob has only helped reinforce what I've already been thinking. I'm not going to seek advice just from people who will probably tell me one thing; I'm going to seek advice from both sides in order to help me make the most informed decision.

We all ended up going to Denny's and had an extremely long conversation. By the end of the discussion, George finally understood what my motives were and supported me. He seemed close-minded at first, but I'm glad Bob convinced me to get us altogether so everyone would understand what was going on.

What can you learn from this? Fight to help your misinformed friend understand everything that's going on in your mind. If you really believe you're in the right, and nobody seems to understand that, fight to help as many people understand. I was so upset and convinced that George wouldn't understand. Having Bob to help clarify what I was saying only made it easier on me. There's strength in numbers.

For the record, I'm not a revolutionary-type person. However, if I see something that shouldn't be, I can only stand idle for so long. Then, that's it!

Alias is over

I just finished watching the final episode of Alias tonight – online. (It's past midnight! We're so crazy!) When I heard that ABC has full episode streaming, I just remembered to use it just in time to see the last episode with my mom (which we both missed on Monday). Yeah, we were both in front of my computer, but it was still pretty good.

I'll miss the show, despite some people losing interest over the years. In my opinion, it finished with a bang and it really was a great run (just like they said). Here's to hoping for another espionage series sometime soon…

Brian Regan humor on comics

I just read today's Pearls Before Swine, and I'm wondering – did Stephan Pastis just listen to a Brian Regan CD? Really funny, actually!

Officially starting Shangri-La Diet

I started “The Shangri-La Diet” last week, but apparently the dose was too small. I was doing 4 Tbsp/day of sugar in water, which amounts to 180 total calories a day. No!!!

With the discovery that my mom has been buying ELOO, I’ll be combining both, depending where I am. If I’m at home, I’ll definitely go with the oil.

“Drink oil? Gross!” Not really. My mom bought some Carapelli Extra Light Olive Oil (17 fl oz) and there’s barely any taste. If you really need to drink water to wash it down, it’s not a big deal either. It’s much easier than drinking sugar in water over a period of 30 minutes, that’s for sure.

Yesterday, we went to Lucille’s BBQ for lunch (and to celebrate 4 birthdays). Our corner of the table (5 out of 20) ordered a Backyard Family Feast. I’m sure I could’ve thrown down more food, but I didn’t want to. I was commenting that I was sort of ticked because I knew the food was so good, but I couldn’t take anymore.

I’ve been telling most of my friends and some coworkers about this, at least the ones that don’t read my blog. In the book, Seth Roberts writes, “It is true that in order to lose weight you must eat less or become more active – but it is not true that this has to be difficult. It is not even true that to lose weight you must try to eat less.” (My emphasis added.)
This doesn’t mean that I won’t exercise – it just won’t be necessary to lose weight.

So many diets and theories have been presented (eat less fat, Atkins, Protein Power, Sugarbusters, South Beach). If they work, fine. But for the majority of people, I don’t think they have. These really are “donut hole” truths, and I’m convinced that this diet fills that “hole”.

I know people that have wanted to get control of their weight, but failed. I’m hoping that this works for me, so I can pass it onto everyone I know. (Hopefully, those friends, relatives, and/or acquaintences won’t take offense.)

Since I found the scale my mom had boxed under the bathroom sink, I think we’re both going to use it regularly to track our weight. Right now, I’m about 6′0″ and 245 lbs (with clothes on, without shoes). When I got my drivers license eight years ago (at 16), I was 5′11″ and weighed 186 lbs. If I dropped down to 200 lbs, I’d be so stoked. Here we go!

Edit: At the time of this writing, “The Shangri-La Diet” is ranked #43 in books at Amazon.