Fat

About 3 months ago and really for the past 3 years, I've been FAT. I hated it but honestly was just too lazy to do anything about it. So I figured I might as well embrace it. And I did. Often I'd have 5,000 calorie days not thinking anything of it nor doing any type of exercise except get up to eat. Granted I do chase my kids around but I don't count that. I weighed 212 pounds! But with all that I had constant headaches and was ALWAYS tired. Any chance I had I wanted to nap. I felt like an old man and realized soon I wouldn't be able to keep up with my kids.

So one day I decided I would take advantage of the $500 a year my company reimburses and buy a gym pass. One visit and that's all it took. I started going to the gym about 5 days a week. I prefer the elliptical machine for 40 minutes on the random hill setting. I burn about 450 calories that way and my heart gets a good work out. I also lift weights after my cardio trying to work out all the muscles I can but not really singling out any one specific muscle. For now, it's all about just building a routine. I've also started running outside about 2 times a week. I run about 4 miles each time. I'm such a slow runner it's terrible. I also have the perfect push up and the Iron Gym at home so I can do push ups and pull ups. Often I do them while on conference calls. That's actually true btw.

With going to the gym I also decided I needed to get my eating under control. So in the beginning, I was literally eating about 1000 calories a day and hating it. But I figured I had the body fat so I wouldn't starve. The weight started to fall off and I really only have had two plateau's this whole time. I now feel like my eating is under control so I balance it out and probably average between 1700 calories a day. Sometimes more, sometimes less. But I don't feel like I'm missing anything. I'm not a stooge so if I want something I'll eat it. Case in point I pounded Olive Garden the other day for my birthday and came out having eaten 1200 calories in one hour.

But the one thing I just have hated doing and quite honestly have avoided are sit ups. I loathe them. They make me feel like I"m gonna hurl every time I do them. So for these 3 months, I haven't done them. Any of them. Not once. Until this week. I'm in that 2nd minor plateau where I can't seem to drop any more so I felt like I needed to do something different. So I begrudgingly started my sit ups. Just 100 for the first day. Then 200, then 300, now today I'm up to 400. I hate them still But I've noticed that I've started to drop slowly again. Not much but there is a tad bit of movement. Enough to encourage me at least. And maybe I'll get those Taylor Lautner abs. Right now, I have one of his 8 abs.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not obsessed, just enjoying the fact that EVERY singly item of clothing I own no longer fits...at all. If I don't wear a belt, my shorts literally fall off.

So as it stands right now, I'm at 191 pounds. That's a loss of 21 pounds. I want to get down to 175 and then do my best to keep it between there and 180. I don't care how long it takes, I'm enjoying the journey right now trying not to burn myself out so I don't end back up on the couch pounding cookies again.

But this week we are going to the River with some friends and I see the junk food piling up in the corner of the kitchen...could be an interesting week.

BOB

Down he Went

I went to Charlotte, NC this week for work and I had to connect in Dallas. Due to bad weather in Dallas the flight had been diverted to Austin and then back to Dallas when the weather cleared. I was desperately trying to make my flight to get to Charlotte so when we landed I was hustling up the jet bridge to find out if my flight had left yet or not. While walking at a brisk pace up the jet bridge I passed this old guy...probably around 75 years old. Well I thought I gave enough room to get by him but apparently not. He tripped over my shoe and down he went. I didn't even notice and kept going until I heard the very loud "THUD". I turned around and asked someone next to me if I had tripped him and they said yes I did. I felt awful. All the blood drained from my face and my heart started pounding for fear he could be really hurt. I ran back to him and couldn't pick him up on my own so two other men had to help me get him up on his feet. Once he was up I started apologizing profusely...and I mean profusely. I walked him up the jet bridge to make sure he was OK...all thoughts about my connecting flight had left my mind. When we got to the top I asked again if he was alright and he replied "yes I am, but getting old sucks". We parted ways and I sped off to look at the monitors. My flight had left. My punishment for not paying attention and knocking this guy down. So I spent the night in Dallas and took the early flight to Charlotte.

Charlotte by the way is a beautiful city. My colleagues and I had dinner at another colleagues house and it was amazing. Huge house, tons of land, no smog, great weather. I liked it there.

BOB

My lot in life

I could easily complain about all that is going on in our family but I have decided I will not. I could get depressed, upset, angry but I won't. I have expressed some of those feelings in the past but no longer.

People constantly ask me how I hold it together or what I'm feeling. My answer is pretty much always the same - this is our lot in life and we'll make the best of it.

My reason for this decision is simple - Jenny. Despite her issue, she presses forward with life, giving 100% of herself to others. She gets upset when she can't help others out even though no one would fault her for thinking of herself during this time in her life. Sure she could make herself recluse, hide in the house, not allow visitors or go out but she is the opposite. Very much the opposite.

So I figure if my wife can keep this outlook on life then I have no reason to not follow her example.

I love her.

BOB

Guilty Pleasures - Guys can have them to.

Why can't guys have guilty pleasures just like girls do?

Lets take Twilight for instance...Now I certainly don't swoon at Edward or Jacob like my wife has done for a couple years now, but why can't guys also enjoy the awkwardness that the Twilight series reminds us of - High School or better year our adolescence.

I watched a Spanish Novela today with my wife's Grandma called Heridas de Amor ( Wounds of Love). Sure it was all about cheating and backstabbing and endless make out scenes but was fun to watch.

So I ask again, why can't guys indulge in some of the so called guilty pleasures our wives do?

I for one am proud of it.

BOB

The blog renewed

It's been some time since I blogged. Oddly, I have received 2 requests of late to renew my blogging efforts. I had no idea my fan base was quite as big as it was. So for you, my two readers, I will blog. Although this time it wont just be about my travels. Sure I'll include that as well but I'll add some other things. Perhaps one day I'll build to three readers...but I won't hold my breath.

When Jenny and I first met, which was via the Internet, I had the following phrase in my profile:

"Life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it".

I feel like I used to live my life that way; stopping whenever I felt the need and took a look around. Not letting the good moments just be moments that I won't remember. Almost 9 years of marriage and 3 kids later, I feel like I'm rushing through everything now just to get it done. "hurry up and eat kids because it's bath and bed". "Lets walk faster so we get to school early." "I can't play with you now, because I'm working".

There are a lot more things I could add but the gist of what I'm trying to say is that somewhere along the way, I made a decision to just keep moving fast and not stop and look around once in a while.

Why though? I've decided that often times, life is easier when it goes faster. Even if what we would stop for would be a lot of fun, I get this feeling that it will be more of a hassle to just stop and have fun, so we don't stop.

Jenny has called me out on it lately. She'll say things like "you never want to go out anymore" or "why can't they do that, just let them."

So I've been doing some self reflection and I do feel I've changed, but not necessarily for the better. Sure I'm a dedicated husband and father, I do pretty well in my job, we have a roof over our heads, but in the end those things aren't what matter. What good is it if we don't enjoy life along the way. One would think that after being hit with the realization that Jenny's cancer could claim her life that I'd be changed and slow down and enjoy the time with her more and with the kids. She is better now but not even that seemed to get me out of my ways.

I read my Aunt Dani's blog the other day and one of her post about reflections really helped me to think about my life and the lesson's I learned during last year.

I'm not promising I'll change overnight, but at least I'm cognizant of my actions now and will work to change them. I don't do "cold turkey" type changes so this will take me some time.

BTW, don't read this as though it's depressing. It's actually meant to be positive for me in that I'm moving in a new direction...where that leads, I just don't know yet.

BOB

NY...again

About a week ago I went to NY...again.  I think this was the 10th time this year or so.  Funny part is I still have never really seen the city.  I continue to be committed to the promise I made to Jenny to not tour anything until she could go with me.  So for now, I am content to land at JFK and drive the 30 miles to our office in White Plains...which according to Phoebe Buffet "sounds like such a magical place."  Ben Stein was on the plane to NY.  My request to sit by him was denied and thus he sat 34 rows in front of me.  But I did pass him as I was boarding, nodded my head, he said hello, and I said I loved his old game show.  For those wondering who Ben Stein is just remember "Bueller...Bueller".  With one hour left in the flight I felt the sickness coming.  I made it to the hotel but was up all night (I'll spare the details).  I was out sick for the first time while traveling in almost 4 years.  I had it easy.  My wife also got sick that same night but at the same time so did Matt and Alex our twins.  Alex got so dehydrated he was put in the hospital for the night.  I had it easy being sick in a hotel room with no interruptions.  My wife had to be strong for all three kids while she was just as sick as me.  If anyone could ever hear her tell the whole story about what she went through those 4 days I was gone it would impress you so much.  My wife is not only my best friend, but is one of my real life heroes.  She is relentless when it comes to our family.  Nothing else matters - not even her own health.  I consider myself a very dedicated Dad, but I've got nothing on my wife.  I definitely picked the right woman to marry.  I love you Jenny.

The rest of my trip was a bore but I will say that the global economy being what it is, has brought on a lot of worry and stress in most businesses.  Mine is no exception and unfortunately it means I have to do the part of HR I hate doing - layoffs.  In my 8 years in HR I've grown pretty experienced with this but the timing during the holidays makes this especially tough.  

One more trip this year - Shanghai (again).  I was there in June and hated the city.  But hopefully now that it will be winter it will feel different.  This is my 3rd trip to China in 2 years and this time I plan to buy every boot leg movie I can.  Last time I bought Kung Fu Panda while it was in theaters and the copy was decent enough....Blue Ray even and it only cost me 6 RMB or $.80 cents.  I probably won't go next year as supposedly my travel is supposedly going to be cut drastically...no complaints here.

Stockholm, Sweden

I didn't realize it had been since July that I last blogged. But anyhonk, I am currently in Sweden but leave tomorrow. I've been here a week and have loved this place. The Swedes are very mild tempered, structured, calm people and they get to live in this amazing part of the world - although 7 months of the year its freezing here. Even now its only been up to 50 degrees all week. But all the leaves are changing here and the trees all surround the many lakes and my hotel is literally across the street from the Baltic Sea. They live in a very expensive society where they pay just under 50% in taxes. However by paying those taxes all Swedes receive free tuition to university, healthcare, retirement, and yes even their funeral is paid by the government when they die. But that doesn't change the fact that I just bought a diet coke for over $2 bucks! My journey began with an interesting start...while on the flight from Frankfurt to Stockholm I happened to be seated next to the King of Sweden, Carl Gustav. The sad fact is I had no idea who I was sitting next to until after the flight was over. We only said hello to each other upon boarding. As we departed the plane, two men is suits, presumably his body guards, seemed to appear from behind me and escort him off the plane and then suddenly out of a side door, down the stairs, onto the tarmac and into a limo that had those little flags on the hood. So I asked someone walking next to me who that man was and the person replied, "you didn't know you were sitting next to the King of Sweden?" And she had this look of utter amazement, almost dumbfounded that I didn't know who that was. But how was I supposed to know who the old guy was??? He stared out the window the whole flight, ate his meal, read the newspaper and even slept a little. If I knew who he was I'd have asked for a picture with him because I am that shameless. So upon getting into my room I fired up the laptop and searched for a picture and sure enough, same guy! After telling some of the Swedish folks here about it they all said they weren't surprised that he was flying on a commercial plane. Apparently the King prides himself on blending in and it seems that in Sweden to blend in and be "common" is a compliment. The Swedes aren't known for being lavish or outlandish it seems but they do LOVE Abba - the only major export Sweden has ever had. So after the first night of activities here, I was told that Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens were staying in our hotel and sure enough, later that day I saw Zac. However he was standing on the balcony of the hotel 6 stories above and I was sure it was him because there was a crowd of girls all outside screaming his name and taking pictures. In case you are wondering, I didn't scream. The hotel here is apparently the most famous hotel and all the celebrities stay here when they visit.

So on Monday we had our meetings - blah, blah, blah - but that night we had dinner in Stockholm City Hall. This is the very hall where every year on December 10th the Nobel Prize awards are given out. We sat in the Gold Hall which was a room made up of gold tiles that are no bigger than your fingernail. We were told that over 18 million tiles made up the room. We ate the same exact meal that was served in 1901 when the first award ceremony was held. It was an impressive night and everything was set up in the exact way the ceremony is. Pretty neat to think that I was able to eat in the same room where the greatest minds in literature, physics, chemistry, and peace have sat.

Tuesday after more meetings - blah, blah, blah - we were able to take a short boat ride to the royal palace. We toured the theater that was built in 1762, then toured the palace which was built in the late 1600s. And believe it or not the current King and Queen live there. However their wing is completely upgraded. I did learn though that during the 1700s when you were invited to the palace to dine, the experience would last about 5 to 6 hours. No one was allowed to get up - not even to use the restroom. So to compensate, they place bowls beneath the table so people could freely conduct their business without having to inconvenience anyone by getting up - number 1 OR 2. And to top it all off it seems the Swedes were not known for bathing that often. So you can imagine what the smell could have been like during a royal dinner.

Wednesday night we went to the local office for our goodbye dinner. Upon entering the building, this choir of girls came walking down the stairs singing. They sounded amazing. Dinner was a classic smorgasbord and yes by the end of the week I finally had Swedish Meatballs. I waited all week despite asking many times. I was sick of being hungry because every other meal was fish. The Swedes love Herring. Its SO GROSS. Don't ever eat it.

Tonight, after being in smaller meetings today and doing some sightseeing, I went with a group of people to dinner and ate duck. I was really nervous because while in China I ate duck and hated it. But seeing as the only other options on the menu were fish, I chose the duck. To my surprise, it was very good. Tasted like a well cooked stake. After dinner we went to the famous Ice Bar. This is a bar where the temperature is -5 degrees Celsius. They give you this parka and gloves to wear while there. Literally everything in the bar is made of ice - the bar itself, walls, couches, and even the shot glasses. I drank two glasses of froze orange juice.

Here are some other pictures of Sweden...Enjoy!