Shocking The Senses

Sorry, Losing Weight was Easy for Me.

- July 6th, 2011 // No Comments » // Science, Thoughts

It has been about three months now since my wife broke her toe.  Before then, we’d been on a diet/exercise program and loss well over 10% of our body weight in the matter of about 2(ish) months.

We used Live Strong.  Their dieting program, Daily Plate, is a free nutrition tracker and (like some other companies) has a gamut of foods in its database.  Their system would track calories of course, but also protein/carb/fat ratio, sodium intake vs. daily requirements. etc.  Most importantly, it’s free!

Just input your intake on a meal-time basis, and input whatever exercise you do and it will give you a calculation versus your allowed maximum caloric input per day.  It is simple, under the caloric intake meant you were burning more than you  consumed.  Over the intake meant you would be burning less than you consumed.  I must give props to them for simplicity of use.  They have an iPhone app too, both free and paid depending on your desire for ads or not.

And by the way. small meals in between large ones kept me from ever getting very hungry and I tell ya, an egg white or two, usually boiled, right before bed really did the trick for night hunger.

(They also had badges that were a fun stroke to my competitive ego.  Things like consecutive diet days, consecutive exercise days)

So, three months later now, I’ve gained most of the weight back.  I really was dieting to do it coinciding with her personal goals, so she had a buddy to go along with, but I was happy with the results too.  We’re talking about getting back into the diet again recently and I’m really struggling psychologically with it.  I know living life at a healthy weight is, well, healthy.  However, the ease at which I lost pounds by simply monitoring my caloric intake and caloric exercise burn and undercutting the total by ~400 calories a day makes me reluctant to commit to a specific time frame.  If I want to lose 8 pounds by November, I need about 4 weeks.  I’ll start in October!

So as many scoffs as I might get regarding weight management, it really is a matter of self discipline.  Pick a program and stick to it.  Don’t worry about carb only or protein only diets, or metabolic spike diets, or <insert fad> diets.  Just be vigilant.

Try it once like that and when you see that it can work (don’t cheat and try to lie to yourself too), you’ll realize that weight management is a matter of fried vs baked and pop vs. water.

Economic Argument pro Gay Marriage

- June 29th, 2011 // No Comments » // Finance, Politics, Thoughts

The thought’s structure is this:

1. Do I care about the well being of children (and is their well being necessary considering they are minors and dependents)?  Yes.
2. Can couples/individuals that adopt children receive assistance by the government (financial)?  Yes.
3. Can homosexual couples (unmarried) adopt children in the brackets of the current law?  Yes.
4. Can they receive the same government assistance as married couples for adopting?  Yes.
5. Can heterosexual marry and qualify for tax breaks in one form or another?  Yes.
6. Can children benefit from these tax breaks (increased income for the family)?  Yes. (Though not always, of course)
7. Can homosexual couples marry?  In a majority of states, no.
8. If they could, would they qualify for tax breaks akin to #5 above?  Yes.
9. Would children benefit from these tax breaks in the same manner as #6?  Yes.

So, if allowing homosexual couples to marry in the U.S. would grant them some of the same breaks that would benefit their children, whom are their dependents and legally “acquired” along with the financial aid of some adoption organizations, bringing them in line with married heterosexual couples from a family finance perspective and regarding monetary benefits gleaned primarily from tax breaks and the like, I can not readily argue against the point.

There isn’t a reason I can think of to counter the point when taking minors into consideration.  Also, other than eliminating the benefits for other married couples (for marrying) or removing the government from the institution entirely (which is an option in my mind)…  For the benefit of the children tied up in the situation, homosexual couples should at least be granted access to some of the same tax break programs.

Now, all that being said, this is entirely an economic observation of things and doesn’t necessarily bring into account any of the moral questions raised by religion or world view and such.

As a tangent, the whole situation also shines light on the 1996 clarification of the definition of marriage, and its seeming potential downfall.

I reread the post several times and I believe it’s clear.  Let me know if otherwise is the case.

As for my personal insensitive opinion regarding the morality of the situation, I’m going home to my loving wife and our naturally begotten child tonight!

Vancouver Canucks and their LOSS

- June 16th, 2011 // No Comments » // Entertainment, Thoughts

1994: Stanley Cup Riots, Vancouver Canucks.
2011: Repeat, Stanley Cup Riots, Vancouver Canucks.

So, is this an example of history repeating itself? In a small cycle of 15 years, it could be I suppose. More likely, it is simply an example of the propensity for humans to act upon stupid and dramatic notions when presented with an opportunity to.

In short, if the chance arises to cause mayhem, people will take it, it seems: especially in Canada!

Social Media: Twitter, Information Streams and Events like the Joplin Tornado.

- June 15th, 2011 // No Comments » // Science, Technology, Thoughts

It was a fairly quiet Sunday in May.  My wife and I were hanging out in the living room watching a Netflix movie.  I was tooling around in Facebook on my PC and Twitter on my iPhone when another tweet came across from one of my favorite seasonal Twitter accounts, @tornadohunt.  Most of the month they had been chasing storms, so I was used to the typical predictive nature of their tweets… locations they were headed to… where they thought a storm was turning.

This one was whimsical,

“Been driving in hail for 15 minutes now! Uncle! Golf balls hurt. Hang on Joplin.”

My mind conjured images of a team of rag tag storm chasers, “Wow”ing at each plunk of the ice while they worked their way through waves of rainfall chasing a beastly cone of wind and torn up trees.

I asked my wife if I could switch the TV from our Xbox to the news to watch what was going on, she begrudgingly agreed.  When I turned to the news, there were reports plastered all over the bottom of the screen regarding tornado watches and warnings in our region (north-eastern Oklahoma).  Within the span of about thirty minutes, all hell broke loose in Joplin, MO.

The following tweets were received in sequence from @tornadohunt.  They were basically first responders after the disaster:

“Joplin hospital hit hard! On fire”

“Major damage in joplin!”

and even more alarmingly…

“Joplin MO. personally witnessing injuries and fatalities”

“Medical personnel needed in Joplin!!!”

Joplin, Missouri.

Then, a full five to ten minutes later, the meteorologist on the news reported the story.  I looked from my phone, to my TV, back to my phone, fairly astonished that this little device in my hand made the situation in Joplin all the more real, and brought it to our attention several minutes before the television broadcast.  Video came out afterwards too, broadcast on Youtube showing a first hand experience during the tornado.  I’ve received breaking news alerts and traffic advisories from local news stations a ways before audio or television broadcast, or even before their websites are updated, but never before something this heavy.

Not to take away from the gravity of the Joplin situation, but just another social media observation that over the past few weeks, I’ve watched new celebrity personalities filing into Twitter, like @AlecBaldwin who joined in mid May of 2011 started with a few drinking/alcohol related tweets and has already ruffled quite a few political feathers just in the past few weeks.  He tweeted that he’d been advised that he shouldn’t “drink and tweet”, commented on the nature of commentators on the political site Huffington Post and had his account apparently hacked.

Regarding the instant access to information that Twitter (and Facebook/other social media) represents, does all of this point to the increasing weight of the American instant satisfaction and gossip mentality?  I’ve heard dissertations about how destructive that frame of mind is.  However, I will always think back to the Joplin tornado and the scores of people in and near Joplin that had their jaw agape at the information they were receiving over a social network and take assertions that this particular form of instant information is bad for us with a grain of salt.

Regarding celebrities in the social spotlight. As unhealthy as a fixation on the lives of celebrities can be, those situations do reveal that when someone who doesn’t really grasp the full scope of what exposing your life to the world through a medium like this, they can damage themselves and/or their reputation.  (Anthony Weiner for instance, along with many other celebrities.  Courtney Love is another example).  It is a window into the increasing reality that these folks are still fallible.  It’s harder to hide your inadequacies when you hand your thoughts to the public.  Media sources pounce on those things faster than you can say “I don’t think that picture was me, my account was hacked!”

If you’re not on Twitter, which would surprise me, give it a try.  Follow some folks.  Keep an eye on things and compare it to what the news reports.

It really is interesting how so much information you didn’t ask for, helpful and otherwise, will spill into your brain.

Firaxia

- June 14th, 2011 // No Comments » // Entertainment, Thoughts

I had an idea a while back.  A fiction story that develops in real time.  I am seeing this idea come to fruition in the form of a fantasy story website creation, http://www.firaxia.com.

STS is about the only place you’ll see a direct reference to Silver, the main character.  Serious events are unfolding for her, dangerous events.  Follow her at http://www.twitter.com/FiraxiaSilver.

On a side note, I’m working on the STS Blog format, and plan on unveiling a distinct mission for the site.

Anthony Weiner

- June 10th, 2011 // No Comments » // Entertainment, Politics, Thoughts

Here is my own increasingly ridiculous silliness:

Hypothetical twitter received responses to Weiner”gate” 2011!

1. Joe “Natalie on Twitter” Strumbold

Response: “I recieved a message from Congressman Anthony Weiner.  He showed me a lovely well centered portrait of his grey underwear clothed genitalia.  I’m pretty sure it was probably some other person’s picture.  He’s such a passionate fella, couldn’tve been him.”

2. “Air-eee-ell”

Response: “I was swimming through the ocean and saw an engorged rock up ahead in the murky darkness.  I thought it might be the marker for Orshella’s lair, and I really wanted to see her to get my hearing back!  It turns out that it was a giant… what?  What did you say?

3. “Eye-Car Lie”

Response: “I am an underage television star who was sitting at home one night answering tweets when suddenly something shocking passed across my phone, it was a photograph of what I am fairly sure was the Washington Monument  When did they knock it down?  Should we start a fund to rebuild it?

E-mail me at mailman@shockingthesenses.com!

NASA : Aquarius Lifts Off! (From the parking lot)

- June 10th, 2011 // No Comments » // Science, Technology, Thoughts

Picture of the Aquarius rocket lifting off from Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base today (Friday).  Good shot, great action capture, big fireball.  A funny thing I noticed about it is that the picture on the main page and the three different designated wallpaper sizes show the shot from the exhaust upward.

However, the “Full Size” option shows the rest of the picture, and upon thinking about it, it makes perfect sense that you’d launch from a wide open cemented area.  It’s just a little funny that you can see the painted parking lot lines.  Looks to be about 70-90 feet away?

I wonder if the fella launching the rocket was sitting in his van with a big red remote fire button.

All silliness aside though, Congrats on the successful launch though, N.A.S.A.!

The iPhone and the Android phone

- June 9th, 2011 // No Comments » // Entertainment, Technology, Thoughts

I have an iPhone. So, I have an iPhone (as the ad states plainly and obviously, if you don’t have an iPhone, you don’t have an iPhone.  Yeah.)  Buddies of mine at work have Android phones and absolutely swear by them, to the point of demeaning other brands.  Various different iterations of the Android phones apparently exist, and I can confirm that because  I was able to experience this first hand while working today.  We went down to a department to configure multiple phones, all “Android” based.

Of the dozen or so phones we were asked to configure Exchange mail accounts on, I touched four.  Of those four phones, there were 3 different iterations of the Android operating system.  Each time I’d start working on a new device, I had to relearn the menus and steps to take to configure the email client.  The directions I had from our ‘expert’ (I put that in single quotes because he’s actually really awesome) were even different per device.  Later I was informed that there are different launchers you can install.  Okay, different launchers.  Why then was it the case that I found myself confused when stumbling through menus to find something as simple as “My Account”.  One would have “Exchange Account” and the other would have “Corporate Sync”.  That bridges beyond different launchers and into different core nomenclature between devices which are named the same!

Okay, I’m not one for participating heavily in the fight between Apple and Google, and this isn’t the first Android I’ve touched for my company, so I have to say that from the perspective of a person who now has first hand experience with irritation about the inconsistencies between one Android device and the next from a support standpoint, I’m happy with my iPhone.

Many of you know that I’m pro small government, but I tell ya, Apple, keep your fingers in my business.  I’ve been lectured on jailbreaking.  I also have read the articles about Apple’s intrusion in my personal life by tracking what I do.  Well, I went to a grocery store recently and bought a few items that have nothing to do with my baby boy.  Three baby product coupons printed when I bought the pack of frozen chicken breasts and broth.

Reasors Grocery, why do you have my debit card info on file?

Apple, keep up the good, consistent work!

Email me with your irritations, I’d love to hear from you.

Americans, whatever we want, we get.

- June 8th, 2011 // No Comments » // Thoughts

I watch television.  Even when I’m not paying attention to it, the television is on.  Pulling my attention away from the blog entry at the moment reveals to me that Arby’s Arby-Q barbecue sandwich is back.  Do I really care about this?  Probably not.  However, will it stick in my mind in the coming days and weeks?

I remember a billboard from a week ago on a random Oklahoma highway about the Arby’s Arby-Q sweet barbecue sandwich.  Also, in one of the Sunday papers not too long ago, the same image of the barbecue sauce drenched roast beef sandwich was depicted.  If I see an ad for the aforementioned sandwich while driving to work one day, I will probably process it quickly.  The television ad from tonight will perhaps flash through my mind, the man consuming the advertised food with a smile on his face and a napkin tucked in his shirt, and whatever other previous related ads regarding fresh cut sandwich meat will border that imagery.

If I decide I don’t want an Arby-Q sandwich, all of the imagery which encourages me toward supporting that decision is still in my mind.  The recesses of my memory are teeming with pictures of the sweet, saucy meat filled buns.  Maybe I have tried it in the past and deemed it not worthy of my palette.  Will I second guess my previous decision?  Should I try one again?  If I haven’t made the decision with distinct clarity, perhaps.  I don’t want one but… how badly do you want an Arby-Q sandwich right now?…

As an American, shouldn’t you get a calorie laden barbecue sandwich immediately?  Throw down your soda and laptop computer and rush out to get one now.

Random Act of Kindness

- December 17th, 2010 // 1 Comment » // Thoughts

I walked away from my desk at work today to go get a few computers ready for a department rollout.  When I came back, I had a card in a red envelope with my name on it.  Inside was a Christmas card with $200 in it.  No name.

Whoever you are, thank you.  I have been telling people about the expenses of my son’s disease and the upcoming bone marrow extraction in January which will cost us nearly $1000 after insurance, plus the financial situation I’m in that some are privy to and some are not (bankruptcy, everyone now lol).

So again, you may not ever read this but whoever you are, you touched my heart.