My wife sent me out to pick up some things since we were having a couple of people over for dinner. I got to do the coupon thing. Match the coupon with the sale and all that. Got a couple quarts of ice cream (Dreyers Slow-Churned Light, if you were worried) for a song. I can see the thrill she gets from it.
Come on--just try it. Find some coupons, then find some sale papers for a few grocery stores. Then play a matching game--it's like the one you used to play in grade school. Put the two together, and do a little math to see what kind of deal you can get on fun stuff.
Go on. Tomorrow's coupon day in the paper. Give it a whirl.
Saturday, May 28, 2005
Friday, May 27, 2005
Friday Mythbustin': Knowledge Costs Too Much Money
Myth: Knowledge is expensive.
Fact: Knowledge is not only cheap, but it's worth it at any price.
Whenever I talk to somebody who's paying hundreds of dollars in interest and in debt up to their eyeballs, and they complain about the bind they're in I'll usually suggest something. A book, maybe, or a class down at the city rec center.
Their answer is inevitably the same: "Oh, I can't afford that!"
I don't usually press the issue. But think about it--how can they afford not to? It's not reading the book or not going to the class that's costing them the money.
Besides, they could get the same book for free down at their local library. They could find all the same information on the internet for free. They could invite a financially competent friend over for dinner in exchange for getting advice and tips. There are a million ways they could learn the things they needed to know to get out of their fix.
Why don't they? I'm sure there are as many reasons as there are people. In my case, it was procrastination, pure and simple. I knew what I needed to do, but I knew that making the turnaround would be painful. I was taking what felt, at the time, like the easy route, hoping that in a couple of years when I was making more money or things had settled down it wouldn't be quite so painful to do it. It's the American dream, right? That things can be better tomorrow than they are today?
Well, it finally dawned on me that things can get better any time I want them to--if I'm willing to make the effort. While the year may be half over, and my debt's only a quarter of the way gone, that's still better than what probably would have happened if I hadn't started this--the hole would be even deeper, and when I finally got around to making the turnaround, it would have taken even longer.
Knowledge is knowledge, and they'll package it up whatever way you want it, and put whatever pricetag on it you're willing to pay.
I noticed this a while back when I started getting into books by guys like Robert Kiyosaki and Tony Robbins. They'll put together a package for every price range. Want to pay $20? Here's a book. Want to pay $100? Here's a CD set. Want to pay $1,000? Here's a seminar. Want to pay $10,000? Here's a seminar on a private island. The knowledge is the same; they're just packaging it to what you can afford and what you think you need to pay to get worthwhile information.
It doesn't take money, but what it does take is time. And while I realize most of us don't feel we have enough of that (I know I sure don't) it's still the same deal as with the money--the longer you wait, the less of it you'll have. You're never going to have more time than you have today.
Fact: Knowledge is not only cheap, but it's worth it at any price.
Whenever I talk to somebody who's paying hundreds of dollars in interest and in debt up to their eyeballs, and they complain about the bind they're in I'll usually suggest something. A book, maybe, or a class down at the city rec center.
Their answer is inevitably the same: "Oh, I can't afford that!"
I don't usually press the issue. But think about it--how can they afford not to? It's not reading the book or not going to the class that's costing them the money.
Besides, they could get the same book for free down at their local library. They could find all the same information on the internet for free. They could invite a financially competent friend over for dinner in exchange for getting advice and tips. There are a million ways they could learn the things they needed to know to get out of their fix.
Why don't they? I'm sure there are as many reasons as there are people. In my case, it was procrastination, pure and simple. I knew what I needed to do, but I knew that making the turnaround would be painful. I was taking what felt, at the time, like the easy route, hoping that in a couple of years when I was making more money or things had settled down it wouldn't be quite so painful to do it. It's the American dream, right? That things can be better tomorrow than they are today?
Well, it finally dawned on me that things can get better any time I want them to--if I'm willing to make the effort. While the year may be half over, and my debt's only a quarter of the way gone, that's still better than what probably would have happened if I hadn't started this--the hole would be even deeper, and when I finally got around to making the turnaround, it would have taken even longer.
Knowledge is knowledge, and they'll package it up whatever way you want it, and put whatever pricetag on it you're willing to pay.
I noticed this a while back when I started getting into books by guys like Robert Kiyosaki and Tony Robbins. They'll put together a package for every price range. Want to pay $20? Here's a book. Want to pay $100? Here's a CD set. Want to pay $1,000? Here's a seminar. Want to pay $10,000? Here's a seminar on a private island. The knowledge is the same; they're just packaging it to what you can afford and what you think you need to pay to get worthwhile information.
It doesn't take money, but what it does take is time. And while I realize most of us don't feel we have enough of that (I know I sure don't) it's still the same deal as with the money--the longer you wait, the less of it you'll have. You're never going to have more time than you have today.
Thursday, May 26, 2005
On A "Lighter" Note
As of this morning, I am officially down 30 pounds.
I was worried. The car problems had sent me straight to stress eating, which I am very good at. However, we really don't have any junk in the house any more, and the hotel room had nothing but water, so I guess I was forced away from snacking.
But I also wasn't doing my 3 miles a day. Or lifting weights. So I've probably just lost 4 pounds of muscle.
But who cares! It's a great feeling to know I've hit the 30 mark. To weigh as much as I did at the start of the year, I'd have to be holding my kid.
And six pounds a month is a good average.
Of course, that only leaves me a month and a half to lose another 12 to get to 220 by my birthday--but I think we can do it. Month and a half is about 6 weeks, so 2 pounds a week still keeps me on schedule. Although I do know the pounds get harder the lighter you go.
Anyways, woo-hoo! 30!
I was worried. The car problems had sent me straight to stress eating, which I am very good at. However, we really don't have any junk in the house any more, and the hotel room had nothing but water, so I guess I was forced away from snacking.
But I also wasn't doing my 3 miles a day. Or lifting weights. So I've probably just lost 4 pounds of muscle.
But who cares! It's a great feeling to know I've hit the 30 mark. To weigh as much as I did at the start of the year, I'd have to be holding my kid.
And six pounds a month is a good average.
Of course, that only leaves me a month and a half to lose another 12 to get to 220 by my birthday--but I think we can do it. Month and a half is about 6 weeks, so 2 pounds a week still keeps me on schedule. Although I do know the pounds get harder the lighter you go.
Anyways, woo-hoo! 30!
Don't Call It A Comeback
Well, don't ever brag about herbs if you ever want to blog again.
What's happened to me? What has led to my absence? Did I see fit to gouge out my eyes, Oedipus-like, after the Lasik incident? Did I give up on this whole turnaround and abandon hope, going down in a blaze of glory, with only bits of Krispy Kreme and Pringles left to mark the site of the tragedy?
Actually, I had to, once again, be right. Only this time, that wasn't a good thing.
Earlier in the year, I predicted I'd see at least one major car problem before this year was out. Well, it's upon me.
My engine started overheating on the way to work last week. When I got out to check the appropriate fluid levels, I discovered my radiator was filled not with a refreshing, cooling, brightly-colored liquid, but with a thick, black goo that looked like something Nickelodeon could have marketed to kids as a toy. Which meant that oil was getting into the radiator. Which meant that somewhere, something was cracked or broken. Something that would be expensive to repair or replace, and take lots of billable hours to get to.
So I turned my car in and was doing the "telecommuting" thing, when I got a call from my boss that they needed me to head down to San Diego for a couple of days to help with some things. She knew my car situation, so they rented me a car. This worked out well--they rented me the car for long enough that it should get me by until the other one is repaired--a fortunate twist.
However, I am still dreading the announcement of the final cost of repairing my car. Estimates put it somewhere around $1,400. As of my last payment, that's more than half of what I still owe on it. And if I borrow the money to pay for it, that's going to put me a month and a half behind on my already slow debt payoff schedule.
Anyways, I'm back now, and I'll keep you filled in on all the sordid details.
What's happened to me? What has led to my absence? Did I see fit to gouge out my eyes, Oedipus-like, after the Lasik incident? Did I give up on this whole turnaround and abandon hope, going down in a blaze of glory, with only bits of Krispy Kreme and Pringles left to mark the site of the tragedy?
Actually, I had to, once again, be right. Only this time, that wasn't a good thing.
Earlier in the year, I predicted I'd see at least one major car problem before this year was out. Well, it's upon me.
My engine started overheating on the way to work last week. When I got out to check the appropriate fluid levels, I discovered my radiator was filled not with a refreshing, cooling, brightly-colored liquid, but with a thick, black goo that looked like something Nickelodeon could have marketed to kids as a toy. Which meant that oil was getting into the radiator. Which meant that somewhere, something was cracked or broken. Something that would be expensive to repair or replace, and take lots of billable hours to get to.
So I turned my car in and was doing the "telecommuting" thing, when I got a call from my boss that they needed me to head down to San Diego for a couple of days to help with some things. She knew my car situation, so they rented me a car. This worked out well--they rented me the car for long enough that it should get me by until the other one is repaired--a fortunate twist.
However, I am still dreading the announcement of the final cost of repairing my car. Estimates put it somewhere around $1,400. As of my last payment, that's more than half of what I still owe on it. And if I borrow the money to pay for it, that's going to put me a month and a half behind on my already slow debt payoff schedule.
Anyways, I'm back now, and I'll keep you filled in on all the sordid details.
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
What's On Your Plate?
This morning for breakfast, I had an omelet with fresh oregano and cilantro. Fresh, as in right off the plant.
I don't know if I mentioned this, but my wife has taken up gardening.
Container gardening, to be specific. Since we don't own a home and live in a two-bedroom apartment, I'm really proud of her for her ambition. We've got everything from green peppers to chilies to strawberries growing out on the porch. And, as you guessed, a nice selection of fresh herbs.
This is her own contribution to our frugality experiment. This year we'll see what grows well and what's worth the effort, and then we'll improve our talents expand our repertoire of deliciously fresh fruits and vegetables as the years go on.
She grew up with a garden, so I guess this is old hat for her. I'll post more about it as some of the produce starts to come in.
I don't know if I mentioned this, but my wife has taken up gardening.
Container gardening, to be specific. Since we don't own a home and live in a two-bedroom apartment, I'm really proud of her for her ambition. We've got everything from green peppers to chilies to strawberries growing out on the porch. And, as you guessed, a nice selection of fresh herbs.
This is her own contribution to our frugality experiment. This year we'll see what grows well and what's worth the effort, and then we'll improve our talents expand our repertoire of deliciously fresh fruits and vegetables as the years go on.
She grew up with a garden, so I guess this is old hat for her. I'll post more about it as some of the produce starts to come in.
Monday, May 16, 2005
Wise Investment: Life Insurance
Well, I finally sprang for life insurance. Fortunately, my company has a pretty good set-up where I get a fair amount for fairly cheap. It's a good shake.
I still don't have as much as I should have. How much is that, do you ask?
If you have kids, your best bet is to get 10 times your household income in term life insurance.
Why? Well, the first part--the 10 times your household income--is so that the money can take the place of working. Invest the entire amount somewhere where you'll get around 10% return on your money, and you'll be able to continue your current lifestyle without working, living just off the interest.
Why buy term, rather than whole life? A couple reasons. First, it's way cheaper. Second, if you're following a financial plan, you should have a good idea when your plan will replace the insurance. If you have $300,000 in insurance, get term insurance for the amount of time it would take you to get $300,000 sacked away yourself.
Obviously, if you're saving about 10 percent of your income, this would be about 10 years. Figure fifteen just to be safe. So get 10-15 year term insurance for 10 times your income.
Again--it doesn't even have to be your income. If you are a single parent, you would want to get enough to pay off any debt you had, with 10 times the amount it would take whoever you have legally designated to take care of your children to pay for them from year-to-year.
I don't recommend waiting for this. If you're young and healthy, you can usually get 10-15 year policies for up to a half a million dollars for under $20 a month. Nearly any budget can find room for that.
I am waiting for the debt to be paid off before I start making many investments, including my 401k, but not this one. My primary goal here is peace of mind, and I just bought myself a nice chunk of that, for just a little bit of money.
I still don't have as much as I should have. How much is that, do you ask?
If you have kids, your best bet is to get 10 times your household income in term life insurance.
Why? Well, the first part--the 10 times your household income--is so that the money can take the place of working. Invest the entire amount somewhere where you'll get around 10% return on your money, and you'll be able to continue your current lifestyle without working, living just off the interest.
Why buy term, rather than whole life? A couple reasons. First, it's way cheaper. Second, if you're following a financial plan, you should have a good idea when your plan will replace the insurance. If you have $300,000 in insurance, get term insurance for the amount of time it would take you to get $300,000 sacked away yourself.
Obviously, if you're saving about 10 percent of your income, this would be about 10 years. Figure fifteen just to be safe. So get 10-15 year term insurance for 10 times your income.
Again--it doesn't even have to be your income. If you are a single parent, you would want to get enough to pay off any debt you had, with 10 times the amount it would take whoever you have legally designated to take care of your children to pay for them from year-to-year.
I don't recommend waiting for this. If you're young and healthy, you can usually get 10-15 year policies for up to a half a million dollars for under $20 a month. Nearly any budget can find room for that.
I am waiting for the debt to be paid off before I start making many investments, including my 401k, but not this one. My primary goal here is peace of mind, and I just bought myself a nice chunk of that, for just a little bit of money.
Saturday, May 14, 2005
Sorry, You Didn't Win Free Lasik At Custom Laser Center, Even If They Say You Did
About a week or so ago I blogged that my wife might have won free lasik from Custom Laser Center in Los Angeles.
Well, she didn't. It's a marketing scam. Here's how it went down.
About a month ago, I entered her in the contest. You can see the entry form here, on their website, although we entered through a local radio station.
(Notice there are no "rules" posted for this contest, nor any mention that there exists any possibility other than "Win Free Lasik").
At the end of the month we get a phone call saying she was "this month's winner" in the "Win Free Lasik" contest. She'd be sent a $2,000 gift certificate. There was no mention of "2nd place," no mention that she had not actually won free lasik. If you inferred that, simply because you were told were a winner in the "Win Free Lasik" contest, oh well. As they would tell me later, they never actually said she had won free Lasik. She was told, as is correct, she had won a $2,000 gift certificate, so why would you think the Lasik would be free?
Well, partly because when we asked what the normal price range for surgeries was, we were told it was between $800 and $5,000. Again, this leaves the impression that there are surgeries that would be covered by a $2,000 gift certificate, since even if $800 was only for one eye, $1,600 would still be covered. After all, this doctor does surgeries for people with presbyopia and all kinds of other problems my wife doesn't have, so there's got to be some prices at the upper end that are beyond our needs.
Now, as you saw in my post about the win, I was suspicious. But, because of the price range quoted to me, I still thought there was at least a possibility.
As it turned out, the price range quoted was also technically accurate, but still deceptive.
Once we got down there, and after watching the video about Wally Joyner, Jessica and Ashlee Simpson, radio DJs, and local news anchors all getting surgery at this place, we were ushered into the back room where the girl sat at the desk with the computer and the paperwork.
She launched into the spiel, and when she came to the "How did you hear about us?" question and my wife said she'd won the contest, the lady proceeded to tell us how the contest worked. What we had actually won--the $2,000 gift certificate--was second place. It was the same thing they gave celebrities. It would not cover the cost of any procedure. In fact, it would not cover half the cost of any procedure, unless we wanted to drive down to San Diego and use their "old laser." Then it would be $1,700.
What about the $800-$5,000 price range quoted on the phone? Absolutely accurate. That includes all prices they charge anybody with or without the gift certificate. One eye, with the certificate, on the old laser, would be $800. Two eyes, without the certificate, on the good machine, would be $5,000. The full price range.
Never mind that it would have made more sense to quote us the price range either with or without the gift certificate, and then tell us which we were being told. Never mind that isn't what we had asked the guy (We'd specifically asked for the "normal" price range). Instead, quote the "full" price range just to get them down here and hope that after they watch the video they'll agree to "finance" the whole thing for $40-$50 dollars a month.
For the next nine years.
The price they charge you seems to have nothing to do with your problem. It's all about which machine you want them to use. Even though their website says, "We understand that there are no one-size-fits-all solutions in Ophthalmology," they seem to have found a one-price-fits-all solution where they charge a certain amount no matter what your problem is. So my assumptions that pricing would be based on severity of problem were dead wrong.
I don't know why I'm so furious with these guys. Even in my last blog post, it's clear I knew this was going to happen. I guess it's just the fact that I drove down there thinking I would see a full spectrum of prices, ranging from well below the amount of my gift certificate to well above--
The guy's exact words on the phone after he quoted the price range were "Why don't you come down and see how much it will cover?" Again, leaving the impression there was a chance it might cover "all" of it, or that it might cover "some" of it.
Instead, he knew exactly how much it would cover. It would cover $2,000. Since no surgery is less than that, there is never any situation where the gift certificate covers any other amount.
Any business relationship is about trust. A customer has to feel he can trust the place he's doing business with. I have to trust the mechanic is telling me the truth about what's under my hood. I have to trust the checker at the grocery store isn't going to steal my credit card number. I have to trust my bank will be able to give me my money tomorrow.
In this case, I'm sure that Dr. Gene W. Zdenek is probably a fantastic surgeon. I'll bet my wife's eyes would be as safe in his hands as in any of the top doctors in the world. I certainly do not think he's a quack, and I do not think anybody who works in his office is anything but sweet and nice. They really were fantastic to us--especially to my kids--while we waited.
But if I feel I was lured into the office under false pretenses, do I even want them going at my wife's eyes?
I don't know. Maybe that's just sour grapes.
I've wanted to get my wife free laser surgery for a while now.
In fact, Lasik surgery is one of the reasons I'm even doing this turnaround. Last Christmas I was thinking how wonderful it would be to get my wife Lasik surgery for Christmas this year. If I could save enough each month, I could have it for her at the end of the year.
Only when I looked at my finances, there wasn't the money to save for it each month. There wasn't enough money to pay the bills I already had each month. I had to do something, and I had to do it now. If I could get all my debt paid off in 2005, then I could get Lasik on the radar for 2006.
So when I took the message from the Custom Laser Center for my wife that she'd won, I guess deep down a part of me was hoping that somehow the universe was finally cutting me a break. Things were finally lining up in my favor.
Well, don't believe it, kids. Nobody's going to hand you anything on a silver platter. There's only one person who absolutely, completely and totally has your best interests in mind, and that's you.
Don't wait for the lottery or the casinos or your rich dying relative or the government to pop up and bail you out or give you what you need. If you know what you want, don't wait around for somebody else to give it to. Just knuckle down, put your shoulder to the wheel, and make it happen.
TANSTAAFL.
Well, she didn't. It's a marketing scam. Here's how it went down.
About a month ago, I entered her in the contest. You can see the entry form here, on their website, although we entered through a local radio station.
(Notice there are no "rules" posted for this contest, nor any mention that there exists any possibility other than "Win Free Lasik").
At the end of the month we get a phone call saying she was "this month's winner" in the "Win Free Lasik" contest. She'd be sent a $2,000 gift certificate. There was no mention of "2nd place," no mention that she had not actually won free lasik. If you inferred that, simply because you were told were a winner in the "Win Free Lasik" contest, oh well. As they would tell me later, they never actually said she had won free Lasik. She was told, as is correct, she had won a $2,000 gift certificate, so why would you think the Lasik would be free?
Well, partly because when we asked what the normal price range for surgeries was, we were told it was between $800 and $5,000. Again, this leaves the impression that there are surgeries that would be covered by a $2,000 gift certificate, since even if $800 was only for one eye, $1,600 would still be covered. After all, this doctor does surgeries for people with presbyopia and all kinds of other problems my wife doesn't have, so there's got to be some prices at the upper end that are beyond our needs.
Now, as you saw in my post about the win, I was suspicious. But, because of the price range quoted to me, I still thought there was at least a possibility.
As it turned out, the price range quoted was also technically accurate, but still deceptive.
Once we got down there, and after watching the video about Wally Joyner, Jessica and Ashlee Simpson, radio DJs, and local news anchors all getting surgery at this place, we were ushered into the back room where the girl sat at the desk with the computer and the paperwork.
She launched into the spiel, and when she came to the "How did you hear about us?" question and my wife said she'd won the contest, the lady proceeded to tell us how the contest worked. What we had actually won--the $2,000 gift certificate--was second place. It was the same thing they gave celebrities. It would not cover the cost of any procedure. In fact, it would not cover half the cost of any procedure, unless we wanted to drive down to San Diego and use their "old laser." Then it would be $1,700.
What about the $800-$5,000 price range quoted on the phone? Absolutely accurate. That includes all prices they charge anybody with or without the gift certificate. One eye, with the certificate, on the old laser, would be $800. Two eyes, without the certificate, on the good machine, would be $5,000. The full price range.
Never mind that it would have made more sense to quote us the price range either with or without the gift certificate, and then tell us which we were being told. Never mind that isn't what we had asked the guy (We'd specifically asked for the "normal" price range). Instead, quote the "full" price range just to get them down here and hope that after they watch the video they'll agree to "finance" the whole thing for $40-$50 dollars a month.
For the next nine years.
The price they charge you seems to have nothing to do with your problem. It's all about which machine you want them to use. Even though their website says, "We understand that there are no one-size-fits-all solutions in Ophthalmology," they seem to have found a one-price-fits-all solution where they charge a certain amount no matter what your problem is. So my assumptions that pricing would be based on severity of problem were dead wrong.
I don't know why I'm so furious with these guys. Even in my last blog post, it's clear I knew this was going to happen. I guess it's just the fact that I drove down there thinking I would see a full spectrum of prices, ranging from well below the amount of my gift certificate to well above--
The guy's exact words on the phone after he quoted the price range were "Why don't you come down and see how much it will cover?" Again, leaving the impression there was a chance it might cover "all" of it, or that it might cover "some" of it.
Instead, he knew exactly how much it would cover. It would cover $2,000. Since no surgery is less than that, there is never any situation where the gift certificate covers any other amount.
Any business relationship is about trust. A customer has to feel he can trust the place he's doing business with. I have to trust the mechanic is telling me the truth about what's under my hood. I have to trust the checker at the grocery store isn't going to steal my credit card number. I have to trust my bank will be able to give me my money tomorrow.
In this case, I'm sure that Dr. Gene W. Zdenek is probably a fantastic surgeon. I'll bet my wife's eyes would be as safe in his hands as in any of the top doctors in the world. I certainly do not think he's a quack, and I do not think anybody who works in his office is anything but sweet and nice. They really were fantastic to us--especially to my kids--while we waited.
But if I feel I was lured into the office under false pretenses, do I even want them going at my wife's eyes?
I don't know. Maybe that's just sour grapes.
I've wanted to get my wife free laser surgery for a while now.
In fact, Lasik surgery is one of the reasons I'm even doing this turnaround. Last Christmas I was thinking how wonderful it would be to get my wife Lasik surgery for Christmas this year. If I could save enough each month, I could have it for her at the end of the year.
Only when I looked at my finances, there wasn't the money to save for it each month. There wasn't enough money to pay the bills I already had each month. I had to do something, and I had to do it now. If I could get all my debt paid off in 2005, then I could get Lasik on the radar for 2006.
So when I took the message from the Custom Laser Center for my wife that she'd won, I guess deep down a part of me was hoping that somehow the universe was finally cutting me a break. Things were finally lining up in my favor.
Well, don't believe it, kids. Nobody's going to hand you anything on a silver platter. There's only one person who absolutely, completely and totally has your best interests in mind, and that's you.
Don't wait for the lottery or the casinos or your rich dying relative or the government to pop up and bail you out or give you what you need. If you know what you want, don't wait around for somebody else to give it to. Just knuckle down, put your shoulder to the wheel, and make it happen.
TANSTAAFL.
Friday, May 13, 2005
Friday Mythbustin': Interest Only Loans
Myth: Interest only loans are a great way to stretch your dollar each month. You get to build up equity without a huge house payment.
Fact: Interest only loans are a great way to take away all the benefits of having a mortgage while still keeping all the bad parts. And the length of the loan becomes a ticking time bomb of looming disaster.
I don't have to tell you all the supposed benefits of an interest only loan. The banks and mortgage lenders are doing their darndest to make sure you understand why interest only loans are the greatest thing since cavemen first started seeking shelter in caves.
But again--use your head. If your banker is really, really pushing it on you in advertisements, in print ads, and in face-to-face visits, who do you think it really benefits?
I had a friend who knew a guy who owned a used car lot. One of those lots you see in the not-so-nice parts of town that catered to people with bad credit. Here's the way his operation worked:
He'd get a car cheap. Either at an auto auction or through some other means. Say he'd pay $750. Then he'd put a $3000 sticker on it. When Joe Public came in to buy it, he'd tell the guy he could finance the $3000, but he'd ask for $750 down. He'd have made back all his costs the moment the guy made the down payment--the rest would be pure profit. Pure profit with over 20% interest. If the guy faulted on payments, he'd go repo the car and sell it to somebody else. This time, even the down would be profit.
Interest only mortgages are a way for the bank to do the same thing. They buy your house up front, and the house remains an asset--their asset, not yours--through the whole process. They get to collect money from you every month, just like you were renting, except that unlike renting, you pay the property taxes and you have to fix anything that goes wrong. Since the payment is interest only, you lose the only benefit of a regular mortgage--in a regular mortgage, some of your monthly payment is working towards making the house yours, free and clear.
Now the kool-aid drinkers of interest only out there are still asking "What about the increasing property values? Won't I get the increased value of my home as equity to help me buy my next home?"
In theory, yes. But the problem is that when you get the loan, you start a timer ticking. A time when your payment is going to "balloon" from something you can afford to something you can't afford. And when you're under time pressure, you become the target of bargain-hunters: a "Must-Seller."
Real Estate gurus like Robert Allen go on and on about how wonderful "Must-Sellers" are to people looking for bargains. These are people who have a house they need to sell and need to sell now. This could be because of a recent divorce, because of a pending foreclosure, because of a recent job loss, or--you guessed it--because of a pending balloon payment. When you're selling under time pressure, you're usually forced to settle at a lesser price than you would have if you'd have had more time.
And, chances are that if they got you to drink the interest-only Kool-aid, they'll get you to drink the second-mortgage-for-any-equity Kool-aid, and you'll squander that away, too.
The banks, knowing people have caught on to the five-year deadline, and fear it, have agreed to do fifteen year interest only loans, but "only if you have really, really good credit." It's hard to get anybody to muster up much fear of a looming deadline fifteen years away. What a bargain!
Except that $1000 dollars or whatever you think you were saving each month will end up costing you the full value of your home. If you'd have done what every financial person who doesn't sell loans recommends and got a 15 year regular mortgage, come 15 years and one day, you would own your home free and clear. No more payments. Now you're free to use that entire payment each month to do whatever you want. Save, take trips, whatever. In the meantime, your kool-aid drinking buddy is having to start all over, either by moving or by refinancing.
Remember--your goal isn't just to get a house. It's to get a house paid off.
Fact: Interest only loans are a great way to take away all the benefits of having a mortgage while still keeping all the bad parts. And the length of the loan becomes a ticking time bomb of looming disaster.
I don't have to tell you all the supposed benefits of an interest only loan. The banks and mortgage lenders are doing their darndest to make sure you understand why interest only loans are the greatest thing since cavemen first started seeking shelter in caves.
But again--use your head. If your banker is really, really pushing it on you in advertisements, in print ads, and in face-to-face visits, who do you think it really benefits?
I had a friend who knew a guy who owned a used car lot. One of those lots you see in the not-so-nice parts of town that catered to people with bad credit. Here's the way his operation worked:
He'd get a car cheap. Either at an auto auction or through some other means. Say he'd pay $750. Then he'd put a $3000 sticker on it. When Joe Public came in to buy it, he'd tell the guy he could finance the $3000, but he'd ask for $750 down. He'd have made back all his costs the moment the guy made the down payment--the rest would be pure profit. Pure profit with over 20% interest. If the guy faulted on payments, he'd go repo the car and sell it to somebody else. This time, even the down would be profit.
Interest only mortgages are a way for the bank to do the same thing. They buy your house up front, and the house remains an asset--their asset, not yours--through the whole process. They get to collect money from you every month, just like you were renting, except that unlike renting, you pay the property taxes and you have to fix anything that goes wrong. Since the payment is interest only, you lose the only benefit of a regular mortgage--in a regular mortgage, some of your monthly payment is working towards making the house yours, free and clear.
Now the kool-aid drinkers of interest only out there are still asking "What about the increasing property values? Won't I get the increased value of my home as equity to help me buy my next home?"
In theory, yes. But the problem is that when you get the loan, you start a timer ticking. A time when your payment is going to "balloon" from something you can afford to something you can't afford. And when you're under time pressure, you become the target of bargain-hunters: a "Must-Seller."
Real Estate gurus like Robert Allen go on and on about how wonderful "Must-Sellers" are to people looking for bargains. These are people who have a house they need to sell and need to sell now. This could be because of a recent divorce, because of a pending foreclosure, because of a recent job loss, or--you guessed it--because of a pending balloon payment. When you're selling under time pressure, you're usually forced to settle at a lesser price than you would have if you'd have had more time.
And, chances are that if they got you to drink the interest-only Kool-aid, they'll get you to drink the second-mortgage-for-any-equity Kool-aid, and you'll squander that away, too.
The banks, knowing people have caught on to the five-year deadline, and fear it, have agreed to do fifteen year interest only loans, but "only if you have really, really good credit." It's hard to get anybody to muster up much fear of a looming deadline fifteen years away. What a bargain!
Except that $1000 dollars or whatever you think you were saving each month will end up costing you the full value of your home. If you'd have done what every financial person who doesn't sell loans recommends and got a 15 year regular mortgage, come 15 years and one day, you would own your home free and clear. No more payments. Now you're free to use that entire payment each month to do whatever you want. Save, take trips, whatever. In the meantime, your kool-aid drinking buddy is having to start all over, either by moving or by refinancing.
Remember--your goal isn't just to get a house. It's to get a house paid off.
Thursday, May 12, 2005
Sleep
Well, my newest issue is probably sleep. As in, figuring how to get everything I need to get done, done, while still getting any sleep.
I've been getting about five hours of sleep a night, and it's just not enough. Yesterday in particular, my body started going into rebellion once the sun went down.
I guess it's like anything else--I just have to experiment until I find an amount of sleep that's right for me.
Getting enough sleep is more important to weight loss than you may think. Not only for the obvious reason (no sleep = no energy = no movement = no calories burned), but your body will actually slow down your metabolism if you didn't get enough sleep the night before. I don't know--maybe it's letting your body catch some zzz's a cell or two at a time. Either way, that means even fewer calories burned. People who don't get enough sleep tend to be heavier than people who do. It's counterintuitive--you'd think the people who were up doing stuff would burn more calories--but it's how the body works.
The question becomes how to get all the other stuff done while still sleeping.
I've been getting about five hours of sleep a night, and it's just not enough. Yesterday in particular, my body started going into rebellion once the sun went down.
I guess it's like anything else--I just have to experiment until I find an amount of sleep that's right for me.
Getting enough sleep is more important to weight loss than you may think. Not only for the obvious reason (no sleep = no energy = no movement = no calories burned), but your body will actually slow down your metabolism if you didn't get enough sleep the night before. I don't know--maybe it's letting your body catch some zzz's a cell or two at a time. Either way, that means even fewer calories burned. People who don't get enough sleep tend to be heavier than people who do. It's counterintuitive--you'd think the people who were up doing stuff would burn more calories--but it's how the body works.
The question becomes how to get all the other stuff done while still sleeping.
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Before the Before Pic
This was taken late September of last year. The before pic in the other post of me in the suit was taken in December. The after pic of me with Doctor Doom was taken a month ago.
So as you can see, I had a running start on this turnaround. I must have been at least 270 in this picture, maybe 275. This was before official government weigh-ins so I can't be sure.
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Tale Of The Tape
I'm down another pound. Since today is almost exactly two months before my birthday, that leaves me almost exactly two months to lose 15 pounds to hit my goal of 220 by my birthday.
So far, in four months, I've lost 27 pounds. That's about 6.75 pounds a month. I'd have to step it up just a hair to 7.5 pounds a month to hit my goal.
Then, I'm giving myself the whole last half of the year to get to 200, that's going to be 3.33 pounds a month--less than a pound a month. Since I know those last few pounds are always the hardest, I'm purposely giving myself that extended time frame. I'm interested to see how much harder it gets. I know it's going to be frustrating to see my progress fall off by half, but I'm mentally bracing for it, so maybe that'll take some of the edge off.
So far, in four months, I've lost 27 pounds. That's about 6.75 pounds a month. I'd have to step it up just a hair to 7.5 pounds a month to hit my goal.
Then, I'm giving myself the whole last half of the year to get to 200, that's going to be 3.33 pounds a month--less than a pound a month. Since I know those last few pounds are always the hardest, I'm purposely giving myself that extended time frame. I'm interested to see how much harder it gets. I know it's going to be frustrating to see my progress fall off by half, but I'm mentally bracing for it, so maybe that'll take some of the edge off.
Who Moved My Cheese?
On a related note, I got off the road today and drove up around the other side of the sign so I could see behind the tree.
It was an ad for an auto detailer.
If your answer to that question was "Detail my car!" then we need to talk.
Monday, May 09, 2005
The Billboard
There's a billboard up in Rubidoux with the following quote:
I have no idea what this billboard is advertising. If there's a logo or something on the billboard, I can't see it. There are some trees blocking the lower right hand corner--maybe that's where the logo is.
I googled the quote, and it's usually attributed to Robert Schuller, although occasionally they credit it to Tony Robbins.
But since it's been bugging me, it's caused me to really ponder the quote. It coincides with the things in this week's Artists Way stuff--recovering a sense of power.
In that book, she argues that some unbelievers use their unbelief as a crutch. Yes, my life stinks, they say, and nothing I want ever happens, but that's because the universe is cold and merciless and cruel. Belief--be it in a god, or in positive energy, or in moral absolutes--belief in anything would force them into a situation where they would have to accept responsibility for their own actions and for their own circumstances. Anything you believe in opens up possibility, and possibility is dangerously, intimidatingly freeing.
For one of the exercises in that book, you were supposed to list who, if you found yourself in the afterlife, you would want to meet. Then, you were to list who you would want to hang out with. Comparing the lists was supposed to be insightful.
I began to imagine in. Me, there in the afterlife. Everybody who ever lived was there, somewhere. After tracking down a couple of people I knew personally, I imagined my treks to go find the people I just had to talk to.
I hope I can explain the insight I got in a way that makes it clear what an epiphany it was for me.
As I was pondering my journeys in this place, marveling at my ability to move freely among all of humanity that ever had been, it occurred to me that I currently live in the same world as all of humanity that now is. Every place that now exists is there to be seen. I'm as free to move about this world as I was to move about the one I fantasized about.
I don't think I've ever fully comprehended that before. The reality that anything is possible. When I was a child, I didn't possess the financial or logistical means of doing such things. When I got older, work and other responsibilities always made me feel anchored down in a similar way.
But ultimately, if I can obtain the means to make it happen, anywhere in the world is open to me. Every person in the world exists to be met and learned from. Every opportunity afforded anyone, anywhere, is mine to have.
That's a terrifying proposition. Suddenly, I am no longer bound by circumstance. I'm no longer "just" my job or my title or my current station. I'm a creature of incredible potential, who is either moving towards it, moving away from it, or, worst of all, spinning his wheels, allowing himself to be borne down by the weight of a thousand yesterdays recycling themselves endlessly into today.
Please, please--not any more.
What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?
I have no idea what this billboard is advertising. If there's a logo or something on the billboard, I can't see it. There are some trees blocking the lower right hand corner--maybe that's where the logo is.
I googled the quote, and it's usually attributed to Robert Schuller, although occasionally they credit it to Tony Robbins.
But since it's been bugging me, it's caused me to really ponder the quote. It coincides with the things in this week's Artists Way stuff--recovering a sense of power.
In that book, she argues that some unbelievers use their unbelief as a crutch. Yes, my life stinks, they say, and nothing I want ever happens, but that's because the universe is cold and merciless and cruel. Belief--be it in a god, or in positive energy, or in moral absolutes--belief in anything would force them into a situation where they would have to accept responsibility for their own actions and for their own circumstances. Anything you believe in opens up possibility, and possibility is dangerously, intimidatingly freeing.
For one of the exercises in that book, you were supposed to list who, if you found yourself in the afterlife, you would want to meet. Then, you were to list who you would want to hang out with. Comparing the lists was supposed to be insightful.
I began to imagine in. Me, there in the afterlife. Everybody who ever lived was there, somewhere. After tracking down a couple of people I knew personally, I imagined my treks to go find the people I just had to talk to.
I hope I can explain the insight I got in a way that makes it clear what an epiphany it was for me.
As I was pondering my journeys in this place, marveling at my ability to move freely among all of humanity that ever had been, it occurred to me that I currently live in the same world as all of humanity that now is. Every place that now exists is there to be seen. I'm as free to move about this world as I was to move about the one I fantasized about.
I don't think I've ever fully comprehended that before. The reality that anything is possible. When I was a child, I didn't possess the financial or logistical means of doing such things. When I got older, work and other responsibilities always made me feel anchored down in a similar way.
But ultimately, if I can obtain the means to make it happen, anywhere in the world is open to me. Every person in the world exists to be met and learned from. Every opportunity afforded anyone, anywhere, is mine to have.
That's a terrifying proposition. Suddenly, I am no longer bound by circumstance. I'm no longer "just" my job or my title or my current station. I'm a creature of incredible potential, who is either moving towards it, moving away from it, or, worst of all, spinning his wheels, allowing himself to be borne down by the weight of a thousand yesterdays recycling themselves endlessly into today.
Please, please--not any more.
Saturday, May 07, 2005
Good Fortune At My Own Expense.
Never get the warranty. It's usually a rip-off. The salesman will try to convince you that the second you walk out the door, the product is going to explode in your hands, and the only recourse you'll have is that warranty.
(Whenever they're doing this, I can't help but wonder if they really think their product is so bad they really, really need to sell me on a promise to fix it.)
Well, four years ago, I got the warranty for my video camera. I don't know why did it, except that I was stupid. If my four-years-younger self wasn't stupid, there wouldn't be a need for a turnaround.
So for about the last year, this video camera hasn't worked right. It works fine if it's plugged in, but if you try to run it off the battery, you get nothing. I kind of need a video camera, so I figured that would be one of my first purchases once this debt payoff thing's done.
Except as I was going through my desk looking for index cards, I discovered this fortuitous gift from my stupid past--a full, four year warranty from Best Buy from November of 2001--two months after my first daughter was born, and she was starting to do cute stuff I figured I'd want to see years and years later.
Apparently I wasn't a total moron--based on the last four digits of the card on the receipt, I didn't go into debt for the camera--I just let the guy bully me into an $80 warranty. Which means I now don't have to pay for a new battery that probably doesn't cost half that.
Either way, it was a nice bit of luck. Look for some of the results of my working camera to pop up soon over at mildlyamusing.com.
Now if I can just discover I left $5,000 in a good growth stock mutual fund and forgot about it.
(Whenever they're doing this, I can't help but wonder if they really think their product is so bad they really, really need to sell me on a promise to fix it.)
Well, four years ago, I got the warranty for my video camera. I don't know why did it, except that I was stupid. If my four-years-younger self wasn't stupid, there wouldn't be a need for a turnaround.
So for about the last year, this video camera hasn't worked right. It works fine if it's plugged in, but if you try to run it off the battery, you get nothing. I kind of need a video camera, so I figured that would be one of my first purchases once this debt payoff thing's done.
Except as I was going through my desk looking for index cards, I discovered this fortuitous gift from my stupid past--a full, four year warranty from Best Buy from November of 2001--two months after my first daughter was born, and she was starting to do cute stuff I figured I'd want to see years and years later.
Apparently I wasn't a total moron--based on the last four digits of the card on the receipt, I didn't go into debt for the camera--I just let the guy bully me into an $80 warranty. Which means I now don't have to pay for a new battery that probably doesn't cost half that.
Either way, it was a nice bit of luck. Look for some of the results of my working camera to pop up soon over at mildlyamusing.com.
Now if I can just discover I left $5,000 in a good growth stock mutual fund and forgot about it.
Friday, May 06, 2005
Friday Mythbustin': Gatorade Is A Diet Drink
Myth: Gatorade is a good drink to have if you're trying to lose weight, because it's for healthy people.
Truth: Gatorade is sugar water.
Yup. You read that right. Gatorade is specially formulated Kool-Aid.
I'm not saying Gatorade is bad. It works. It does exactly what it's meant to do. But it's not meant to make a person healthy.
What it's meant to do is give you energy, and Gatorade does this really well.
There are several kinds of sugar, each of which your body processes at a different speed. Some can be absorbed into the bloodstream directly from your stomach. Some have to be processed by your kidneys first.
Gatorade contains a special mix of these sugars. By giving you some of each, it creates a "time release" effect, where by the time your body has finished processing one set of sugars, the others are starting kick in.
Now, as with all energy, if your body doesn't use it, it stores it. Which means if you aren't running around or working hard or somehow giving your body things to do with that energy, it's going to store it--and to your body, stored energy means fat.
So if you aren't up and moving when you have It in you, it will stay in you, on your waistline.
Which leaves you with two options. Either stop drinking it or go out and give yourself a reason to need it. Both should help a lot.
And it's not just Gatorade, by the way. Lots of so-called "healthy" drinks are basically sugar water, and just as bad as soda. I stopped drinking Sobes when I noticed the ingredients list was exactly the same as Mountain Dew, except the water wasn't carbonated.
Be careful when the first ingredient in your juice says "High Fructose Corn Syrup." Fructose is the sugar your body processes instantly. That means it spikes your blood sugar levels, and unless you're doing something to burn it, your body will instantly start pulling that stuff out of the blood and storing it as fat in order to get your levels back to normal. Not even Gatorade, the stuff designed for athletes who are giving 110% every moment, tries to pump that much sugar into the body right away.
Truth: Gatorade is sugar water.
Yup. You read that right. Gatorade is specially formulated Kool-Aid.
I'm not saying Gatorade is bad. It works. It does exactly what it's meant to do. But it's not meant to make a person healthy.
What it's meant to do is give you energy, and Gatorade does this really well.
There are several kinds of sugar, each of which your body processes at a different speed. Some can be absorbed into the bloodstream directly from your stomach. Some have to be processed by your kidneys first.
Gatorade contains a special mix of these sugars. By giving you some of each, it creates a "time release" effect, where by the time your body has finished processing one set of sugars, the others are starting kick in.
Now, as with all energy, if your body doesn't use it, it stores it. Which means if you aren't running around or working hard or somehow giving your body things to do with that energy, it's going to store it--and to your body, stored energy means fat.
So if you aren't up and moving when you have It in you, it will stay in you, on your waistline.
Which leaves you with two options. Either stop drinking it or go out and give yourself a reason to need it. Both should help a lot.
And it's not just Gatorade, by the way. Lots of so-called "healthy" drinks are basically sugar water, and just as bad as soda. I stopped drinking Sobes when I noticed the ingredients list was exactly the same as Mountain Dew, except the water wasn't carbonated.
Be careful when the first ingredient in your juice says "High Fructose Corn Syrup." Fructose is the sugar your body processes instantly. That means it spikes your blood sugar levels, and unless you're doing something to burn it, your body will instantly start pulling that stuff out of the blood and storing it as fat in order to get your levels back to normal. Not even Gatorade, the stuff designed for athletes who are giving 110% every moment, tries to pump that much sugar into the body right away.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
3 Miles A Day
So somewhere a few days ago I got the idea I should start moving 3 miles a day. At this point, I don't care if I walk it or run it or crawl it, just as long as I locomote, under my own power, three miles every day.
This was due in part to watching Supersize Me. In that, the guy tries real hard not to move much. Not moving much is one of the secrets to gaining weight.
So I'm thinking, if this guy can create a "perfect storm" for weight gain, why not work a little harder to create a "perfect storm" for weight loss?
In essence, that's what I've been doing, but I knew if there was one category I was lacking in, it was the cardio. So I decided to give myself this goal of three miles to get me going on cardio.
So I've been doing it. It's been entirely walking, so far. Yesterday it was at the mall. Today it was just around a neighborhood. And you know what? It feels great. One of the coolest part was seeing how loose my clothes fit--I don't realize sitting around the office or driving my car all day that even with my belt on the tightest loop, it's not hugging my hips very well. That's really encouraging.
(There's a tip for you: If you want to feel good while you're walking, put on some of your "bigger" clothes, so you can feel like you've shrunk inside them as you walk. "Weren't these tight when I left the house?")
Of course, I blew my shot at a "perfect" storm--tonight was my brother's birthday, and once we busted out the meat at my folk's house, I didn't eat so hot. But at least it was grilled and smoked, even if it was pork and sausage. As penance, I passed on the cake.
Tomorrow, we shall make it all come together. Weightlifting in the morning, perfect eating all day long, and walking in the--well, walking sometime. Once I can fit it in.
And all shall be amazed at my powers of self-diminishment.
This was due in part to watching Supersize Me. In that, the guy tries real hard not to move much. Not moving much is one of the secrets to gaining weight.
So I'm thinking, if this guy can create a "perfect storm" for weight gain, why not work a little harder to create a "perfect storm" for weight loss?
In essence, that's what I've been doing, but I knew if there was one category I was lacking in, it was the cardio. So I decided to give myself this goal of three miles to get me going on cardio.
So I've been doing it. It's been entirely walking, so far. Yesterday it was at the mall. Today it was just around a neighborhood. And you know what? It feels great. One of the coolest part was seeing how loose my clothes fit--I don't realize sitting around the office or driving my car all day that even with my belt on the tightest loop, it's not hugging my hips very well. That's really encouraging.
(There's a tip for you: If you want to feel good while you're walking, put on some of your "bigger" clothes, so you can feel like you've shrunk inside them as you walk. "Weren't these tight when I left the house?")
Of course, I blew my shot at a "perfect" storm--tonight was my brother's birthday, and once we busted out the meat at my folk's house, I didn't eat so hot. But at least it was grilled and smoked, even if it was pork and sausage. As penance, I passed on the cake.
Tomorrow, we shall make it all come together. Weightlifting in the morning, perfect eating all day long, and walking in the--well, walking sometime. Once I can fit it in.
And all shall be amazed at my powers of self-diminishment.
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
We won? Maybe?
A while back I mentioned "Dumb Stuff I'm Trying To Get Out Of Debt," or something like that. I said that in addition to all the smart things I'm doing, like coupon clipping and budgeting and debt snowballing, I was also trying some not-so-effective things like entering lots of contests.
Not the lottery, mind you. Not Vegas or online casinos. Just the free stuff. I use iwon.com for all my searches, that sort of thing. The way I saw it, at the end of the year, I'd be able to say, "Total raised by me: $____.__. Total raised by contests: $0.00."
Well, it looks like that may be wrong. But I say that with a caveat.
Over at the website of a local radio station, there's a contest page that shows all the contests Clear Channel has going on right now, and for the last few months there's been a contest for free Lasik, one free surgery a month, and I've entered my wife's name each month.
(While we both have vision problems, hers are far worse than mine. To get her Lasik has been a goal of mine for a while now, hence why I kept entering her in this contest.)
Well, she won. To be specific, she won a $2,000 gift certificate to Custom Laser Center in Los Angeles.
Now marketing is part of my job, too. So I have this underlying suspicion that while the ad says "contest" for "free" Lasik, this is really some kind of bait-and-switch technique, where it turns out surgery really costs $3,200 and they bring you all the way down there and butter you up and convince you to fork over the other $1,200.
When we asked them about it on the phone, they said procedures run from $800-$5,000, depending on your vision problems.
So I am extremely interested to see how this goes, and I will definitely be making a full report here. We're meeting the guy with the letters after his name a couple of weekends from now, so watch this space for exciting developments.
Not the lottery, mind you. Not Vegas or online casinos. Just the free stuff. I use iwon.com for all my searches, that sort of thing. The way I saw it, at the end of the year, I'd be able to say, "Total raised by me: $____.__. Total raised by contests: $0.00."
Well, it looks like that may be wrong. But I say that with a caveat.
Over at the website of a local radio station, there's a contest page that shows all the contests Clear Channel has going on right now, and for the last few months there's been a contest for free Lasik, one free surgery a month, and I've entered my wife's name each month.
(While we both have vision problems, hers are far worse than mine. To get her Lasik has been a goal of mine for a while now, hence why I kept entering her in this contest.)
Well, she won. To be specific, she won a $2,000 gift certificate to Custom Laser Center in Los Angeles.
Now marketing is part of my job, too. So I have this underlying suspicion that while the ad says "contest" for "free" Lasik, this is really some kind of bait-and-switch technique, where it turns out surgery really costs $3,200 and they bring you all the way down there and butter you up and convince you to fork over the other $1,200.
When we asked them about it on the phone, they said procedures run from $800-$5,000, depending on your vision problems.
So I am extremely interested to see how this goes, and I will definitely be making a full report here. We're meeting the guy with the letters after his name a couple of weekends from now, so watch this space for exciting developments.
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
Erik on Supersize Me
I just saw Supersize Me for the first time. Yeah, I know that it would seem like the fitness-savvy half of this website would have been there on opening day, but the budget-savvy half of this side waits for most stuff to come out on DVD (the longer you wait, the cheaper, and all that).
Here's some of my thoughts. If you've seen it, you'll probably remember all the stuff I'm talking about. If you haven't, keep these in mind when you do check it out.
First, the biggest culprit in his weight gain and health problems wasn't the Big Mac, nor was it the Filet o' Fish he kept calling the "worst thing on the menu."
The burgers aren't health food, obviously, but if you remember the guy who's been eating two Big Macs a day since before he was married, the Big Macs weren't the problem. He was skinny, and his cholesterol was fine.
Plain and simple, it was the fries and the soda.
The guy knew this in the film. That's part of why it's called Supersize Me--he's paroding the company's willingness to give you a half a pound of fries and a tub of soda with your sandwich.
However, to claim that the company had an insidious plot motivating them do this is just crazy. In fact, it was Americans who were trying to be smart who motivated the whole "giant food" craze. They weren't trying to be smart about their health, though. They were trying to be smart about their money. Getting a ton of food for little money felt like a great value.
Fast food places were actually behind the curve on this one--they were copying gas stations. I remember when I was a kid, and you could get a 44oz soda at 7-Eleven or AM-PM for under a buck. You never got your soda at the fast food place. You got your burger there, and then headed over to the gas station for your tasty beverage. I would guess fast food places knew this was happening and chasing those dollars. The syrup for the extra soda probably only cost them a dime, and they got the business back.
Even in the movie, when they needed the really big soda, they headed to 7-Eleven.
So let's stop vilifying everybody. Let's stop saying it's the government's fault for letting McDonald's sell people a product they really wanted to buy. Let's stop saying it's McDonald's fault for producing a product that people enjoyed. Let's even stop saying it's the public's fault for trying to be smart about their money or their convenience or whatever motivates them.
Instead, let's take advantage of the new knowledge we have. Let's make smarter food choices and smarter reading choices (Googling "365 day turnaround" instead of "gossip about Justin Timberlake" is a good start, so I'm delighted you're here).
As is oh-so-briefly mentioned in the film, often times we don't care as much about health care as we do about "sick care." We notice our bodies only insofar as they stop working, and only then are we dragged kicking and screaming to see a physician. We don't live healthy, we "diet." We don't live healthy, we get gym memberships we never use.
That's part of why this website talks about a "365 day turnaround." I'm not looking to toss some pounds off and then go back to what I was doing. I'm trying to completely modify my lifestyle into one that makes my body healthier and healthier and my finances more and more solvent, rather than slowly getting fatter and fatter and getting myself into a deeper and deeper financial mess.
So I'm grateful for the movie, mostly because I think it imparts a whole bunch of really good knowledge, and knowledge is always power.
But as far as singling out McDonald's specifically--he also wasn't exercising (wasn't moving much at all), wasn't drinking water outside of what he got from them, wasn't monitoring his calorie intake--he was creating a perfect storm of physical neglect that went beyond just the food he was eating. I could probably get similar effects if I did all that stuff and ate his wife's vegan menus.
Okay, maybe not. But you get the idea.
Healthy is a lifestyle, not a boxed product from a fast food place.
Here's some of my thoughts. If you've seen it, you'll probably remember all the stuff I'm talking about. If you haven't, keep these in mind when you do check it out.
First, the biggest culprit in his weight gain and health problems wasn't the Big Mac, nor was it the Filet o' Fish he kept calling the "worst thing on the menu."
The burgers aren't health food, obviously, but if you remember the guy who's been eating two Big Macs a day since before he was married, the Big Macs weren't the problem. He was skinny, and his cholesterol was fine.
Plain and simple, it was the fries and the soda.
The guy knew this in the film. That's part of why it's called Supersize Me--he's paroding the company's willingness to give you a half a pound of fries and a tub of soda with your sandwich.
However, to claim that the company had an insidious plot motivating them do this is just crazy. In fact, it was Americans who were trying to be smart who motivated the whole "giant food" craze. They weren't trying to be smart about their health, though. They were trying to be smart about their money. Getting a ton of food for little money felt like a great value.
Fast food places were actually behind the curve on this one--they were copying gas stations. I remember when I was a kid, and you could get a 44oz soda at 7-Eleven or AM-PM for under a buck. You never got your soda at the fast food place. You got your burger there, and then headed over to the gas station for your tasty beverage. I would guess fast food places knew this was happening and chasing those dollars. The syrup for the extra soda probably only cost them a dime, and they got the business back.
Even in the movie, when they needed the really big soda, they headed to 7-Eleven.
So let's stop vilifying everybody. Let's stop saying it's the government's fault for letting McDonald's sell people a product they really wanted to buy. Let's stop saying it's McDonald's fault for producing a product that people enjoyed. Let's even stop saying it's the public's fault for trying to be smart about their money or their convenience or whatever motivates them.
Instead, let's take advantage of the new knowledge we have. Let's make smarter food choices and smarter reading choices (Googling "365 day turnaround" instead of "gossip about Justin Timberlake" is a good start, so I'm delighted you're here).
As is oh-so-briefly mentioned in the film, often times we don't care as much about health care as we do about "sick care." We notice our bodies only insofar as they stop working, and only then are we dragged kicking and screaming to see a physician. We don't live healthy, we "diet." We don't live healthy, we get gym memberships we never use.
That's part of why this website talks about a "365 day turnaround." I'm not looking to toss some pounds off and then go back to what I was doing. I'm trying to completely modify my lifestyle into one that makes my body healthier and healthier and my finances more and more solvent, rather than slowly getting fatter and fatter and getting myself into a deeper and deeper financial mess.
So I'm grateful for the movie, mostly because I think it imparts a whole bunch of really good knowledge, and knowledge is always power.
But as far as singling out McDonald's specifically--he also wasn't exercising (wasn't moving much at all), wasn't drinking water outside of what he got from them, wasn't monitoring his calorie intake--he was creating a perfect storm of physical neglect that went beyond just the food he was eating. I could probably get similar effects if I did all that stuff and ate his wife's vegan menus.
Okay, maybe not. But you get the idea.
Healthy is a lifestyle, not a boxed product from a fast food place.
Alton Brown On Supersize me
Here's what Alton Brown, host of TV's Good Eats--the show that got me interested in cooking--had to say after he saw Supersize Me.
I just saw the movie “Supersize Me” and I have to say that I liked it. It was fun, irreverent film making on a shoestring and it’s good to know that filmmakers can still pull that sort of thing off.
What shocked me about the movie wasn’t what it said, or. Heck I already new most of that stuff. What shocked me were the gasps I heard from the audience, most of whom seemed generally surprised that big business could be so…well…business like.
Here’s what it comes down to kids. Ronald McDonald doesn’t give a damn about you. Neither does that little minx Wendy or any of the other icons of drivethroughdom. And you know what, they’re not supposed to. They’re businesses doing what businesses do. They don’t love you. They are not going to laugh with you on your birthdays, or hold you when you’re sick and sad. They won’t be with you when you graduate, when your children are born or when you die. You will be with you and your family and friends will be with you. And, if you’re any kind of human being, you will be there for them. And you know what, you and your family and friends are supposed to provide you with nourishment too. That’s right folks, feeding someone is an act of caring. We will always be fed best by those that care, be it ourselves or the aforementioned friends and family.
We are fat and sick and dying because we have handed a basic, fundamental and intimate function of life over to corporations. We choose to value our nourishment so little that we entrust it to strangers. We hand our lives over to big companies and then drag them to court when the deal goes bad. This is insanity.
Feed yourselves.
Feed your loved ones.
And for God’s sake feed your children.
Don’t trust anyone else to do it…not anyone. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t go out to dinner every now and then…that is after all one of the great joys of life…but it isn’t life itself and that’s what I’m talking about.
Is MacDonalds food bad for you? What do you think? Does that mean you shouldn’t eat it? No, it just means you shouldn’t live on it or anything else made by someone you wouldn’t hug.
Burgers don’t kill people.
People kill people.
Don’t be one of them.
A
Monday, May 02, 2005
More on The Artist's Way
This isn't really a review, since I'm only 1/6th of the way through this book, but I have to say, I absolutely love it.
The book's subtitle is "A Spiritual Path To Higher Creativity," but honestly, it is neither as New Age or as artist-centric as the title might make it sound. In reality, it's a book for people who are, for some reason, finding themselves unable to do something they really, really want to do. Maybe it's the mythical "writer's block," or maybe it's taking up a hobby you've missed for years, or maybe it's quitting your job for one you actually enjoy.
Whatever it is, if you're blocked--especially if you're painfully blocked, I recommend The Artist's Way.
It's certainly not for everybody. As you can see in the reviews, people either love this book or they absolutely loathe it.
Some may find Cameron's tone too dreamy and poetic--if you are such a get-down-to-business type, you probably just get-down-to-business and do it anyway, and don't need the book. But if, perhaps, you know you should get-down-to-business, but can't bring yourself to do so, this book might help restore some of the sense of "play" that is, in the end, what makes any "serious" business worthwhile.
The book--at least so far--could be summed up as the counter to the worldly idea in this quote, taken from the book's margin:
We have been taught to believe that negative equals realistic and positive equals unrealistic. -- Susan Jeffers
This book strives to restore the position of the "positive" as not only realistic, but, ultimately, the only thing worth bothering with.
It's set up as a twelve week course, apparently mirroring an actual twelve week class the author used to teach. The two primary features of the course are "Morning Pages"--three pages of stream-of-consciousness writing about anything you do each morning--and "The Artist's Date"--a date with one's proverbial "inner child" each week, where you do something you know you would enjoy but wouldn't normally have the chance (or allow yourself!) to do.
If all of this seems too "group therapy" for you, you might want to steer clear. But if it sounds intriguing at all, go do a "Look Inside This Book!" thing over at Amazon and see what you think.
Anybody reading ever finish it?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)