Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays To All!

Things are a little nuts around here this morning. Little Tank tore through his presents like a twister through a corn field. Toy parts scattered everywhere, wrapping paper hanging from the ceiling fan, and Transformer robot figures hiding behind every cushion.

It's been fun. We especially love watching the Disney Christmas Parade, despite all the overly blatant Disney product plugs.

Now comes the roast beast. And then I hope to grab a chance for a workout before we go visit friends this evening. Have to do something to justify the holiday eating frenzy.

Holiday Treats Weighing Me Down

Roast beef or turkey?
Lumpy gravy or thin?
Stuffing or potatoes?
Mincemeat pie or cherry cobbler?

"Oh look! There's another game on. I'll take this plate to go. To go to the couch anyway."

"Yea, last year we used paper plates for the party. Do you know those suckers bend in half if you put more than two scoops of Sara's macaroni and cheese on them?"

"Of course it's homemade!"

"Oh, it's low fat eggnog."

"Well, I see something green in the casserole, so it must be healthy."

"Joey, don't talk with your mouth full"

"Where's the butter?"

"Now ya'll eat up. We don't want any leftovers to worry about."

"I'll never eat cheesecake again."

"I'll run this off tomorrow."

"Man, it's true, turkey really does make you sleepy."

Free Market? Really?

This blog is not going to turn into the ramblings of a disillusioned believer in the Adam Smith school of economics. For you non-history buffs, Smith introduced the concept that free markets (i.e. non-regulated) are the most efficient way for economies to thrive. Smith didn't count on the domino effect that the demise of a bloated cornerstone of industry might cause.

Bank bailouts. Did anyone put a gun to the heads of the lenders when they made those questionable loans to questionable borrowers? Nope - it was business, and for the last few years, business was good.

Did anyone put a gun to the head of the borrowers when they accepted the terms of those loans, most of which entailed certain rate adjustments in the first 2-3 years of the loan? Rate adjustments that were, even at that the day they took out the loan, certain to substantially raise their monthly payments? Nope, they were just happy to get the house they thought they could never afford. And they were right.

Auto bailout? Let's give money to the most inefficient industry on the planet - the American car companies. Between the labor unions, pension commitments, and poor quality, it's going to take alot more than a check to save their future. Major restructuring has to happen.

So, in the end, we are creating one heck of a deficit burden. One that will likely dethrone America as the premier economic powerhouse. A status we've maintained for the last sixty+ years. Quite a legacy for the next generation.

Free market? Apparently not.

Winter Cold - My Once A Year Malady

Like clockwork I've developed my once a year Winter cold. Wake up one morning and my head feels like it's it's full of liquid lead. Tickle in the throat at night that leads to interminable coughing and a night spent tossing and turning on the couch. Think I've gone thru two boxes of tissue to deal with the sneezing.

I usually just fight through it on my own, using a homemade menu of Sudafed and steam, but as I'm in a period of heavy duty client facing meetings, I think maybe I'll hit the Doctor and see if some antibiotics might accelerate the exorcism process. I'm all into the healthy approach, and I don't think I've been on a prescription med in years, but I'm curious to see if modern science might ease my aggravation.

I'm actually halfway convinced the Doc is going to tell me it's allergies, as this once a year "cold" only hits at this time of year and has only been occurring since we moved to Texas. I've never had allergies of any type before, so that would be a real bummer.

I'm Hooked On These Online Network Television Archives

Was putzing around on the computer late last night after the wife and kiddo had gone to bed. Just another case of Friday night energy that seems to hit at the end of a long work week.

I ran out of productive things to do and when I reached the point where I was just aimlessly browsing the web, I decided to catch up with some old friends.

Pulled up my handy little online TV/Movies tuner and punched up a couple of episodes of Moonlighting (I love Bruce Willis in that show). Then I got really ambitious and started watching the first couple of episodes from the first season of 24. My wife and I only picked up on watching the series in season 3, so it might be fun to see how it all started.

You would not believe the amount of tv shows and movies (from old series like Gunsmoke to the newest episodes of current shows) that are available online. All for free! When I started looking into the online directories that came with the tuner software, I found episodes posted a day after network airing and movies that are still in the theater. Pretty wild.

Anyway, the software does a good job of consolidating all the online sources and presenting them in an easy to use interface. Well worth the one time charge to have access to all this current and past entertainment at your fingertips for immediate viewing or download.

Check it out here . I promise you, it beats buying DVDs of old shows or trying to search thru your cable channel guide to find something worth watching.

Just ordered some of this stuff...

Rushing out the door, but I did want to let ya'll know about this Vitager package. Did some research, and it's getting alot of good press based on results.

I just ordered some and will later post my thoughts on any effects.

Growing Old - It's Not A License To Lounge

We are cavemen. At least that's what our bodies think.

Goodbye To An Old Friend

My best friend is gone. Beringer came into my life way back in 1995 when I had just been thrown back into the bachelor pool. I've always been a dog lover, and acquiring a puppy at that stage of my life seemed infinitely appropriate.

We were inseparable and I have a lifetime's worth of memories of afternoon runs, chasing sea gulls on the beach and wrestling over the wettest, slimiest tennis balls you can imagine. For years it was just the two of us. And that was enough.

Eventually I married and Bear learned to accept sharing his house with others. But every evening when I got home, he'd be stretched out under the desk in my office waiting on me. It was his refuge from the craziness when things were a little too hectic.

I'm not going to go on about the last couple of years. About the onset of dysplasia and the pain he was in. About the devastation that diabetes rained down on him. Or the spiral he fell through the last few weeks.

I'm also not going to justify the decision I had to make with the usual "it was his time" or "he's in a better place", because as much as I know those to be true, I still feel guilty. I know that will change over time, and I know it had to be done, but I still look for him under my desk every time I'm in my office. And I still hear his bark when I see a squirrel run past my window.

Goodbye Bear - you were loved.

One final note. I was determined not to have Bear's final memories be of being carried into a car and carted off to the vet. Instead I was able to find an in-home euthanasia service run by a local vet. Bear was able to go out where he lived, and he took his final breath in his favorite spot - right under my desk.

Another Video That Just Needs No Introduction

Negative Calorie Foods

You hear alot about these so-called "negative calorie" foods that actually require more calories to process than they provide through consumption. "Lose weight by eating more" sounds really appealing to most people.

For example, if you consider water to be a food, then cold water is certainly a negative calorie food. It contains no calories at all and the body has to expend energy to bring it up to blood temperature. So every time we drink a glass of cold water we burn up a couple of calories and lose a little weight. But there are very few foods like this. Most foods that are on the list do not really use more calories than they add, or if they do, the effect is negligible ... until you factor in the body's ongoing need to expend calories (energy) just to stay alive. Celery for example does notprovide enough calories to cover both the energy that it takes to digest it, plus the energy that we expend even when we are doing nothing. So that is why people call it a negative calorie food.

A negative calorie diet is typically used in a fasting or detox plan and can provide a cleansing effect that greatly benefits the health of body and mind.

A list of negative calorie foods includes:

* Apples
* Asparagus
* Beets
* Blueberries
* Broccoli
* Cantaloupes
* Carrot
* Cauliflower
* Celery stalk
* Celery root
* Cranberries
* Cucumbers
* Eggplant
* Endives
* Garden cress
* Garlic
* Grapefruit
* Green beans
* Green cabbage
* Lamb's lettuce
* Lemons
* Lettuce
* Onions
* Papayas
* Pineapples
* Prunes
* Radishes
* Raspberries
* Spinach
* Strawberries
* Tangerines
* Tomatoes
* Turnips
* Zucchini


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What's On My iPod Workout Playlist?

So, what's in my recent Top Rated playlists? Well, as I've been doing alot of high intensity biking and such lately, it's mostly rock. Here are some sample songs that I keep in heavy rotation during workouts.

"Surrender" - Cheap Trick
"Nine Lives" - Def Leppard
"Welcome To The Jungle" - Guns 'N Roses
"All Fired Up" - Pat Benatar
"Sheena Is A Punk Rocker" - The Ramones
"So What" - Pink
"Ballroom Blitz" - Sweet
"Funplex" - The B52's
"Livin' On A Prayer" - Bon Jovi
"Call It Rock N Roll" - Great White
"Tear Me Down" - Meatloaf
"Teenagers" - My Chemical Romance
"Come On Feel The Noise" - Quiet Riot

It's an eclectic mix, but i have over 15,000 rock songs to choose from covering everything from 1960's surf guitar rock to 2008 funk and alt rock. iTunes rules, and I buy most what I have, but I will say that pretty much any music I want is available in the usenet groups. New releases are usually posted within a day. It's old school Internet, but it's all there in the mp3 groups. Comment to me if you need some tips. But do patronize iTunes and support the artists. The search functions and such of the iTunes Store are impressive.

Also. check out this article that provides sites where you can download rock and other types of music for your iPod playlists

Hooked On Green Tea Punch

Have you seen those bottles of green tea "juice" that all the grocery stores are stocking now? Both Lipton and Nestea offer everything from green tea, peach tea, diet green tea, etc. Not really sure what the true percentage content of the beneficial green tea is, but the drinks are good and make for a relatively healthy alternative to soda or other sugar laden concoctions.

I keep a stash in my fridge and take them to the gym to enjoy when I'm sweating to the oldies in the sauna after a good workout. Plus, I've **ahem** heard that they make a dandy mixer for the occasional rum punch.

For those more interested in getting the multiple benefits of green tea in a more traditional way, here's one of the sources I use to get the good stuff.