Bo Schambelan is Rambling

I met Bo at a Haverford College Alumni function, and since then we’ve become friends and colleagues. Last month I set Bo up with a blog at www.boheadquarters.com.

There is some great writing up there already… some short stories and poetry that Bo had in his stash. I’m so excited to see what he writes once he gets into the swing of things and starts updating more regularly. The blogosphere needs more folks like Bo; his voice and opinions are really unique and not at all like the typical stuff out there.

Enamored With Ron Paul? Read This

I just read this blog post, cheerfully titled “Ron Paul Hates You“, which points out some reasons Democrats and swing voters shouldn’t fall too in love with the straight-talking Ron Paul. (emphasis his)

… the diaries are full of people who can’t find enough nice things to say about Rep. Ron Paul, whose smiling face is at this moment being beamed to America from the site of the Republican debate in New Hampshire–after which, we may be sure, we will see yet another round of diaries brimming with joy about Paul’s sweet words against the Iraq war. You, dear reader, may even be considering writing one or more such diaries yourself.

Before you do, fellow Democrat, please understand just one thing: Your affection for Paul is far from mutual. Through his words, his actions, and his votes in Congress, he has made one thing abundantly clear over the decades: Ron Paul hates you. By building him up, by supporting him, by taking him seriously, you are not driving a wedge into the heart of the Republican Party–you are only giving him a helping hand along the road to his goal of destroying just about everything you stand for.

Please read on for the well researched rebuke against Ron Paul.

This kind of reminds me of another straight-talking Republican presidential candidate out of Texas who seemed to be shaking things up before election time but ended up catering to all the wrong folks when he got to bat.

(Thanks, Ugly)

Vivanativa: This Band Gets the Net

While in Puerto Rico last month, we got a chance to see VIVANATIVA play live at a free concert put on at Guajataca beach. Ever since, I’ve been tuned into their website almost daily where they let you play any of their songs off any of their albums.

This band is supposedly the shiznit in PR. I think they’re pretty rocking. Check out their stuff at their website. You’ll probably have to buy their albums at Amazon if you’re in the states.

vivanativa

Testing Out Windows Live Writer

IMG_0635

I might recommend this to some clients if it works well.

Let’s see what adding an image is like. Well. there it is. Gonna try to float it to the right. Done. That’s a picture of my brother Jeremy and his lovely bride Dawn, who just got married in Puerto Rico last month.

Let’s see how it looks!

Our Office View

We just moved recently, and one of the things I really liked about our old place was how our office was setup and the view of “the duck pond” across the street.

So when picking the apartment we wanted at the new complex, the view was very important. It’s amazing to think that this kind of scenery is just 5 miles from the Limerick nuclear power plant. Actually, the radiation is probably what’s causing these trees to grow. Or more likely the trees were planted to hide the power plant behind it.

In any case, I’m glad that they are there. I’ve always dreamed about sitting at a computer, writing the great american novel, and gazing out at the trees in thought. Well, I’m not writing a novel (yet), but at least part of the dream lives on right now.

Here are some photos I just took. It’s raining out there and a little dark. If I was more patient or a better photographer, I could have gotten some better stuff. The photos don’t do it justice. I adjusted the levels a bit to make the green pop, which is why the desk looks kind of brown. Some top secret shots of WineLog work on those screens too.

Office View 1 Office View 3 Office View 2

Bought WinZip Today

I bought a license for WinZip today. In some kind of reverse morals, it felt a little dirty. Just a little dirty. Overall, I feel like a tip top citizen.

I’ve been using the software for years without a license (minus my use through serveral employers who did have licenses). Their software has gotten stricter lately about not letting you use it after the trial period, so I consented myself to using just the built in Windows XP zip functionality for the past few months. But that just doesn’t cut it for some things. Like pesky zip files that only WinZip can handle. So I’ve given in and bought a license for $29.95.

Spring is like a perhaps hand

‘was reading some E.E. Cummings poetry today. Here is probably my favorite poem by him or anyone.

Spring is like a perhaps hand
(which comes carefully
out of Nowhere)arranging
a window,into which people look(while
people stare
arranging and changing placing
carefully there a strange
thing and a known thing here)and

changing everything carefully

spring is like a perhaps
Hand in a window
(carefully to
and fro moving New and
Old things,while
people stare carefully
moving a perhaps
fraction of flower here placing
an inch of air there)and

without breaking anything.

Another View

Here’s another view of that great feat I accomplished earlier today. I’m too proud.

No Email

Inbox Cleared

Back from a long hiatus, and I’ve just cleared out my inbox. Yeah, me. Expect more from me over the coming weeks. A bit hard to see that 220 in the previous posts title as I’m weighing in at a whopping 226 again after a very gluttonous honeymoon.

No Email

220 Pounds. Challenge Update.

After one week of this challenge, I am at 10 of a possible 14 points. If I do a perfect job of things from here on out, I could get a maximum of 56 points.

It may be a little pesimistic, but it’s easier for me to think of this in terms of “misses” or “points lost”. So I’ve lost 4 points in one week. Not so good. At that rate, I’m going to end up with just 44 points and “alright” status. Then again that’s not so bad.

I’m finding it’s pretty tough to get to the gym EVERY SINGLE DAY. Last Friday, I cheated a little and counted 5 hours of walking at the gym (suit shopping) and 1 hour of dancing as my workout. I think it works.

I missed on my diet last Thursday and took a big hit Sunday when I ate too much and didn’t get to the gym either for -2 points. I can pretend that Easter is a special exception, but there are always exceptions. For instance tomorrow is Kim and my dating anniversary. I’m planning on eating 2000+ tomorrow. With any luck I can avoid being docked a point for going over 3000.

Macaroni and Cheese, Taco Bell
Hungry yet? Yeah, me too. Today I had 2 bowels of cereal for 700Cal, a chocolate chip cookie for 100Cal, and 4 slices of pizza for 1200Cal. We went grocery shopping at 8:00pm and Kim hinted at making some Kraft Macaroni and Cheese when we got home. I was ready to blow it all. Luckily she got less hungry herself (or maybe just for my benefit), but we passed.

Then I was listening to last week’s Diggnation podcast and they started talking about Taco Bell. Ayyeyyeyeyeee!!! I’m such a fat ass that I went to the Taco Bell website to drool. In high school I was a 4-item Taco Beller. Since then I’ve moved down to a 3-item Taco Beller, and am now just a 2-item Beller… meaning I only order 2 items off the menu when I eat there.

I decided to use their nutritional information calculator to figure out how many calories are in my favorite combinations. For instance a Chicken Ranchero Taco, a Crunchwrap Supreme, and a Spicy Chicken Burrito is just 1260 calories. That’s a lot of food. A more typical meal for me is Chicken Burrito Supreme, Beef Chalupa Supreme, and Soft-shell Beef Taco, which comes in at just 950Cal. I could definitely eat that twice a day.

I think these websites understate things a bit though. I checked out all kinds of fast food nutritional calculators to figure out what my typical meals are. Most are around 1000Cal. I was most amazed that a Wendy’s Junior Bacon Cheeseburger is just 370Cal. That could be the most yum for your Cal buck right there.

Maybe I can become famous by losing weight on the Taco Bell diet. That would be awesome. I might call them up.