Monday, April 28, 2008
Crew
Kit, with The Evergreen State College crew, will be competing in the WIRA Championships on Lake Natoma at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center this coming weekend. I bet it's going to be very exciting. Though I can't be there, my love and thoughts will be with you, Kit. Good luck to you and your entire team!
Friday, April 25, 2008
Home Ownership and Money Decisions
As any homeowner knows, there's always some kind of maintenance to be done, something to buy, something that takes your time and money. This week I've been working on two projects: getting my garage door opener fixed and looking into buying a new lawnmower. With both, and as is not uncommon, I've had to make a decision on how much money to spend. The interesting thing is that both involve a difference of about $150.
With the garage door opener, I can choose to either have the broken part replaced, at a cost of about $150, or have the entire opener replaced, at a cost of $300. I'm told that the average life of a garage door opener is 15-20 years. I've had mine for 17 years so, statistically, it's near the end of its life. However, I've really never had any problems with it before now, and the repairman says that the motor sounds good. And, he says that he has seen many openers last well past the average lifespan. So, I've opted to have the broken part, only, replaced ($150 instead of $300) and will keep my fingers crossed that the opener lasts for several more years.
With the lawnmower, I've been doing some serious thinking about buying an electric mower. I'd like to say that I'm doing it for the environment, to reduce my carbon footprint. But, I have to be honest and say that I'm doing it because I want to make the job of mowing the lawn easier. I know of at least three people who have electric mowers and they are say it's the only way to go. Though electric mowers have less power than gas mowers, and as such don't have self-propelled models, may have a difficult time getting through tall or wet grass, it sounds like they're easier to use. They definitely have to be easier to start than gas mowers, not to mention quieter and cleaner. I believe they are also lighter, which is probably why they're easier to use. My dilemma is whether to buy a corded or cord-free model. The cord-free model--of course--is more expensive. About $150 more expensive. I thought about this as I was mowing my backyard this evening, thinking about what it would be like if I had a cord attached to the mower and plugged into the outlet on the back patio. What a pain! Especially with the posts that hold up the patio cover and the fact that I have to mow not only the back, but also the side of the house. So, I think I've pretty much convinced myself that a cordless model is worth an extra $150 for the convenience. After all, the only reason I'm considering buying a new mower is to make the chore easier!
Now, do I go to Lowe's, the hardware store, Sears, order online from Amazon...
With the garage door opener, I can choose to either have the broken part replaced, at a cost of about $150, or have the entire opener replaced, at a cost of $300. I'm told that the average life of a garage door opener is 15-20 years. I've had mine for 17 years so, statistically, it's near the end of its life. However, I've really never had any problems with it before now, and the repairman says that the motor sounds good. And, he says that he has seen many openers last well past the average lifespan. So, I've opted to have the broken part, only, replaced ($150 instead of $300) and will keep my fingers crossed that the opener lasts for several more years.
With the lawnmower, I've been doing some serious thinking about buying an electric mower. I'd like to say that I'm doing it for the environment, to reduce my carbon footprint. But, I have to be honest and say that I'm doing it because I want to make the job of mowing the lawn easier. I know of at least three people who have electric mowers and they are say it's the only way to go. Though electric mowers have less power than gas mowers, and as such don't have self-propelled models, may have a difficult time getting through tall or wet grass, it sounds like they're easier to use. They definitely have to be easier to start than gas mowers, not to mention quieter and cleaner. I believe they are also lighter, which is probably why they're easier to use. My dilemma is whether to buy a corded or cord-free model. The cord-free model--of course--is more expensive. About $150 more expensive. I thought about this as I was mowing my backyard this evening, thinking about what it would be like if I had a cord attached to the mower and plugged into the outlet on the back patio. What a pain! Especially with the posts that hold up the patio cover and the fact that I have to mow not only the back, but also the side of the house. So, I think I've pretty much convinced myself that a cordless model is worth an extra $150 for the convenience. After all, the only reason I'm considering buying a new mower is to make the chore easier!
Now, do I go to Lowe's, the hardware store, Sears, order online from Amazon...
Monday, April 21, 2008
10 Big Diet Myths
I've been reading Weight Loss That Lasts: Break Through the 10 Big Diet Myths by James M. Rippe, M.D. and Weight Watchers. It's a quick and easy read, and I like the format. Each of the "10 Big Diet Myths" is a chapter. The chapter includes the myth, "kernels of truth" or a discussion of the pieces of the myth that are true, and then the real facts according to the author and Weight Watchers. Mostly, the book is reaffirming what I already know--some of what I know first hand based on the dieting/lifestyle changes I've been working on the last few months-- and not giving me a lot of new knowledge, but I'm still finding it interesting.
The author, and Weight Watchers, really goes back to basics in that a calorie is a calorie, and that if you want to lose weight you have to expend more calories than you take in; you have to create an energy deficit. It does matter what time of day you eat, how you combine your food, if you eat carbs or protein or fat. It's all about the calories!
And, the average American underestimates the amount of calories they consume in an average day and overestimates the amount of calories they burn during exercise. I definitely found this to be true as I began recording everything I ate. I didn't think I was doing too badly before, but it's amazing how many calories there can be even in a reasonably healthy diet. If you're truly eating healthy, you may be doing just fine for maintaining your weight, but cutting back quite a bit is the way to go if you want to lose. You have to create a 3500 calorie deficit for each pound you want to lose. That's a lot of calories to cut and/or burn! And when 30 minutes of moderate exercise only burns about 150 calories, but a slice of pizza and a beer add up to about 500 calories, it's going to take some work and some changes to slim down and get healthier.
The thing that rang the most true for me is that each person's diet or lifestyle change is going to be different. For instance: I'm a snacker and I know it. I'm not going to be successful in my healthier way of eating if I tell myself I can't have snacks. So, I have to eat lighter at meal time, and then plan healthy, low-cal snacks (and the occasional chocolate) into my day. And I know that I'm going to drink a glass of wine, or even a gin & tonic or martini each evening so, again, I include that "treat" as a part of my daily diet, and in turn eliminate something else. For me, eliminating all but high-fiber breads, tortillas, and cereals has worked as a good trade off. And those white, overly-processed foods are not good for me anyway. This works for me (on most days anyway), but isn't going to work for someone else. Someone else would gladly go without any alcohol if they could just have a roll and butter with dinner every night!
So off I go to read more about diet myths: You can lose weight with exercise alone; You can't lose weight if you have the wrong metabolism or genes; You can boost your metabolism by what, how and when you eat, etc...and to try to stick with my choice to eat healthier and lighter.
The author, and Weight Watchers, really goes back to basics in that a calorie is a calorie, and that if you want to lose weight you have to expend more calories than you take in; you have to create an energy deficit. It does matter what time of day you eat, how you combine your food, if you eat carbs or protein or fat. It's all about the calories!
And, the average American underestimates the amount of calories they consume in an average day and overestimates the amount of calories they burn during exercise. I definitely found this to be true as I began recording everything I ate. I didn't think I was doing too badly before, but it's amazing how many calories there can be even in a reasonably healthy diet. If you're truly eating healthy, you may be doing just fine for maintaining your weight, but cutting back quite a bit is the way to go if you want to lose. You have to create a 3500 calorie deficit for each pound you want to lose. That's a lot of calories to cut and/or burn! And when 30 minutes of moderate exercise only burns about 150 calories, but a slice of pizza and a beer add up to about 500 calories, it's going to take some work and some changes to slim down and get healthier.
The thing that rang the most true for me is that each person's diet or lifestyle change is going to be different. For instance: I'm a snacker and I know it. I'm not going to be successful in my healthier way of eating if I tell myself I can't have snacks. So, I have to eat lighter at meal time, and then plan healthy, low-cal snacks (and the occasional chocolate) into my day. And I know that I'm going to drink a glass of wine, or even a gin & tonic or martini each evening so, again, I include that "treat" as a part of my daily diet, and in turn eliminate something else. For me, eliminating all but high-fiber breads, tortillas, and cereals has worked as a good trade off. And those white, overly-processed foods are not good for me anyway. This works for me (on most days anyway), but isn't going to work for someone else. Someone else would gladly go without any alcohol if they could just have a roll and butter with dinner every night!
So off I go to read more about diet myths: You can lose weight with exercise alone; You can't lose weight if you have the wrong metabolism or genes; You can boost your metabolism by what, how and when you eat, etc...and to try to stick with my choice to eat healthier and lighter.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
It's a Start
I've thought about starting my own blog for quite sometime, but never took the first step to begin. All kinds of excuses went through my mind: it takes time, who would want to read what I have to say, I don't know if I can be disciplined to keep it up...Yet everyday as I'm thinking about the great books I'm reading or want to read, the things my kids do to make me proud, the good times I have with my family and friends, the things that make me happy and the things that make me angry, and I think: I want to share this with someone. I should blog it! So here I am. I don't know how diligent I'll be, or if anyone else will ever read what I write, but I've come to the conclusion that none of that really matters.
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