This entry is part 1 in the series, “How to buy chicken without getting punched.” (This part is supposed to be funny.) If you enjoy this article, please consider sharing it via your favorite social media, like StumbleUpon. Thanks.
A few months ago, I went to the local higher-priced grocery store to pick up some chicken. This particular trip to the store however, I got more than I expected: the chicken came free with a side order of attitude and the ever popular “shoulda’-said” chaser.
Here’s the scene: a local favorite shi shi fru fru store in Southeast Portland. The fluorescent light flickers slightly above a stainless, freshly hosed down meat slicer. The smell of fresh salmon and dill permeates the air like the aroma of a wet dog, only fishier and more dill-like. The butcher stands behind the counter, seemingly annoyed by my perplexed-but-friendly stare into the 8-foot glass case, his fingers twitching in preparation for the imminent smoke break or opportunity to slash something, I can’t be sure. (I swear there is a light saber somewhere in this story.) Read the rest of this entry »
“Correct. Sugar, honey, and high fructose corn syrup sweeteners are all considered natural food ingredients under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s definition of the term, “natural.”"
Somehow I missed this, but the corn lobby is on the slithery move again, trying to convince the wary public that high fructose corn syrup is actually good for you since it is “all natural” and all. Although I’m a little late (her article was published in June), I just found GoFrolic (http://food.gofrolic.org), where writer Debs walks you through the latest creepy campaign from the guys in the suits and explains what’s really going on. And in the process, she admits that she may have inadvertently suggested this campaign 
- but that’s kind of like suggesting that you’re the one who told the guy with the horns that maybe taking something from someone else is good for a larf or two…I’ll go out on a limb here and say that I think Debs is off the hook. 
Read the rest of this entry »
Have you ever had one of those weeks where you feel like you are one step behind in everything you’re doing?
That was my week last week. Actually, maybe the entire month of July.
My biggest immediate challenge is to get my business plan in order - and believe it or not, fitness is part of it. I’ve been more or less in vacation mode this month, trying to adjust to my new situation pursuing writing and blogging projects fulltime, and the looseness of my schedule has been a detriment to getting things done. Fortunately I had nearly a month of vacation time built up before I left my job, so I’ve been floating on that income. That is about to change however, since the month is ending and as expected, there is no paycheck coming from the old steady corporate source. Looks like I’m winging it from here on out. I had better get my act together. Read the rest of this entry »
- Or, “Forgive me blogger, for I have sinned”
On the exercise front, last week was honestly a wash. I ran exactly once at the beginning of the week, and the rest of the week really did slip by. My knees have been giving me a little trouble, but not enough to justify my lack of exercise. The real problem has been my sleep schedule - I’ve been staying up too late, and getting up too late, mostly because I don’t have a set work schedule in place.
For me, my most natural, comfortable schedule is sleeping from 2AM until 10AM - I was able to do this when we were working solely as artists and had no kids or significant responsibilities. We set our own schedule, and it was bliss - and both the art and software engineering worlds in my experience are rarely driven by a 9 to 5 workday. However, with kids that rise at 7AM - going to bed at 2AM does not work very well for more than a few nights in a row. I’m much better off getting up early. Read the rest of this entry »
In this morning’s Oregonian, the front page includes an article on a proposal to require chain restaurants to display key nutritional information on their menus and menu boards (”Plan would let diners count calories on menu“). Portland of course is not the first major city to consider the idea publicly, but given the progressive nature of the political scene here, it would not be surprising if the rule was approved.
According to the proposal, this would not affect small businesses. Here is a summary, as quoted from the Multnomah County Health Department’s information site: Read the rest of this entry »
Our recent trip to Southern Oregon confirmed firsthand one of the laws of domestic road trips: it is almost always tough to find real food in unfamiliar places. When you are highway traveling, you find that gas stations, corner stores, and fast food are the most common options, and with two kids who seem to get hungry every once in a while for no apparent reason, your decision process sometimes leaves something to be desired.
However, If you can spend a little time in smaller highway towns, once you ask a few locals and learn the schedules of the mom and pop outfits (hours in small restaurants and food retailers are often odd), you can generally find what you’re looking for, or better yet, discover an unexpected culinary surprise.
Read the rest of this entry »
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We had a great day picking berries today. Here’s an excerpt from a conversation that my four-year-old son had with a fellow berry picker:
Jonah: “I burped!”
Woman: “Oh my! Have you been eating a lot of berries?”
Jonah: “Nope. Just one. At a time.”
That, is my boy. Read the rest of this entry »
In case you haven’t noticed with my references to software analogies, occasional odd conversational mannerisms, and interspersed star trek/star wars/80’s TV quips, I am a bit of a geek. While my wife has worked hard to reform my lifelong social and fashion ineptitudes, at heart, I still want a lightsaber.
I may also fly stunt kites. And know a thing or two about 3D animation.
As part of this curse, I also tend to like to read the stats of my blog, even down to the nitty bits of mindnumbing server data, looking for clues about well, you all. Don’t worry, I don’t know anything about what you did last summer. Read the rest of this entry »
“Once in a while it really hits people that they don’t have to experience the world in the way they have been told to.”
-Alan Keightley, as quoted from A Brief Guide to World Domination by Chris Guillebeau
Regular readers of Almost Fit know that I have been mentioning the words World Domination for a few weeks now. Have I gone mad? Do I think that eating real food in moderation will create a position as Potentate of some small nation state? Maybe. But if such a seat were ever offered, I would have to pass - The aspirations that are already on my list are more than enough, and do not include the title of Magistrate. But anything is possible. Read the rest of this entry »
Ed. Note: This post is a personal checkin on my weight loss progress using the simple technique of eating real food in moderation. If you’re interested in how I’ve lost 26 lbs. so far without dieting, surgery, or supplements, read Food, Drink, and Decadence: How the French stay thin, which sums it up nicely. Thanks for reading.
“I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.”
- Picasso
Since the beginning of the year I’ve made some big changes in my life. At the top of the list are the following:
- I have fundamentally adjusted my dietary habits away from packaged and fast food to eating real food in moderation. Goodbye, old Twinkie friend. Au revoir, Coca Cola and Mountain Dew - we made a great team for a while, but our relationship was clearly becoming destructive. Sayonara, my happy-go-lucky Cheetoh buddy - how I will miss your humor and salty witticisms, but your services are no longer required.
- I left my corporate job behind a few weeks ago in pursuit of my own projects, including Almost Fit of course, as well as several others that are in the works. I’ve also started picking up freelance writing work already, though I really haven’t started pursuing it much yet. I am trying to launch at least one more site by the end of next week and then yet another in August. More details to come, but I can tell you that the second site is related to Almost Fit, and the third is focused on my technology background. And those are just the projects I’m talking about here…Fascinating, ain’t it? Read the rest of this entry »
