muscle vs. fat

I have worked so hard to exercise and I get so tired of seeing people selling fat burners to people like me on twitter. For starters, exercise tends to burn fat but since you also gain muscle mass, it takes time for it to have a significant impact on weight. For another thing, the real issue isn't a number on a scale but percentage of body fat! In the end there is no magic cure!

home insurance

I am so glad I don't have to deal with finding good homeowners insurance rates. There are so many crazy things going on in the world right now and you just can't protect against everything- floods in Australia, massive amounts of ice and snow in the north, mudslides in the west... it's such a mess out there and insurance would be so expensive! How do you protect against everything?

diet pills

I read yet another article today about the dangers of even the most effective diet pills. Especially the most effective diet pills- since a lot of those pills use unhealthy methods of shedding weight. Plus they're usually not even permanent- stop taking the pills and the weight comes right back! Better to just diet and exercise- it took time to gain the weight and it will take time and hard work to lose it!

diet pills vs exercise

Do you remember awhile back when Phen Fen was such a rage? I don't know why. I guess I just don't understand people who turn to pills like Fenphedra. Maybe part of it is because since I've started running, I've just fallen in love with it. It feels so worthwhile and so much more fun than taking a diet pill!

NYE champagne cocktails for everyone!

Guest post written by Mitch Richardson

Sometimes I feel kind of left out in my circle of friends because I don't have kids like the rest of them. But I try not to feel down because I can go on vacations or go out without having to worry about a babysitter or changing dirty diapers. So when I mentioned that I might be having a New Year's Eve party at boys' night a few weeks ago, I got everyone's support on the matter.

I think that the party is going to be much larger than I had originally thought or expected. I keep thinking of more people I should invite or friends keep texting me and asking if it's okay if other people can come. But I have the space, so the only thing that I'm worried about is having enough food and drinks. I was searching for a caterer a few weeks ago online when I came across some info about wireless internet companies and after I read through it a little bit, I switched over to one of them.

I want to at least make sure that there will be a NYE champagne cocktail for everyone there and of course enough drinks and food to go around otherwise.

mice

Is it "mice" or "mouses", when you're referring to computer mice? (mouses?) Anyway I was just thinking about how much nicer they have become. The old-style mice/mouses, with bearings to signify movement, were good but they got so dirty and hard to use. The new laser mice are accurate and faster. Plus now you can get good wireless mice/mouses, which are fantastic!

jewelry

My sister is much more of a "fashionista" than I am. Maybe it's because I work from home- I almost never dress up or wear makeup or fashion jewelry. Just not my thing! But since she works in an office 5 days a week, she dresses up every day. And I guess it's because she dresses up so much- she also dresses up on weekends too. I'm an underachiever!

projectors

Now that I have left my old church, it is so nice to not have to worry about taking care of a projector or needing to find the best price on projector bulbs or anything like that. From what I've heard, the situation is kind of falling apart without me, but it's their loss. Meanwhile, it is nice to have so much more time for myself!

It always seems to tastes the best on New Year's Eve

Guest post by Toney Elliott

On New Year's Eve, my sister, her husband, their children and I, all eat Chinese food. We place an order a few hours earlier in the afternoon, for the food to be delivered at around 7:00 PM. It's the only time of the year that we order lots of different items from the menu of our favorite Chinese restaurant.

My brother-in-law picks me up at my house around 0:00 PM. When I hear Jack beeping the car horn outside my house, I first make sure I have set my home security alarm from www.INHOMESECURITY.net before going out for New Year's Eve. We stop at the grocery store, and pick up some horns and poppers for the midnight celebration. The kids love making all that noise and confetti mess.

Then we finally arrive at my sister's house, and by now it's usually starting to snow a bit. We spend the afternoon watching movies and playing games with the kids. Later in the evening, Marge and Joe, long time friends of the family, always come by for a visit. We play cards, share a few glasses of wine, and celebrate that we all made it through another year. They leave and to go back home for the night.

The Chinese food arrives late. It's funny, but some how it always seems to tastes the best on New Year's Eve.

my "office"

We've been fixing up so many things around this house- everything from door handles to fresh coats of paint. Specifically I've fixed up my bedroom-slash-office, and I'm really pleased with the results so far. I still have more things to do to fix up this room, but it's becoming quite functional and pleasant. Plus I always seem to need to clean more things up, pick up more gizmos and gadgets from schlage hardware or some other hardware sotre... there's always more to do! But still, I am pleased!