The Notorious P.I.G.

Around two years ago, my wife and I decided to try to lose some weight. At the time I was pushing three bills. I wasn't there yet, but I was certainly closer to 300 than 200. In fact, at my heaviest, I was closer to 300 than I was to 250. Over the course of several months and with the help of several modifications to our eating habits, I dropped a decent amount of weight. Fast forward to today, and I have put back on some of that weight. I'm not up as high as I was two years ago, but I've gained back much more than I would care to admit. I'd like to think that I'm just bulking up for the winter, but since I don't get to hibernate, I don't think that excuse works.

This week I started being much more careful again. We originally lost weight using the Weight Watchers plan, so I know it works for me. The real problem is finding that motivation within myself to get started. Once I make it through those first few days and fight off the cravings for fried things, ice cream and chocolate (not all together, mind you), it becomes more routine.

Why am I telling you this, you ask. It's all about accountability. If I tell you about it, I have to keep going. I can't just quit if I have a responsibility to you, my faceless denizens of netdom. After all, I can disappoint myself--I've been doing it for over twenty years now--but I can't stand to let anyone else down, even if I have no clue who they are.

That said, I think I'm going to go order a pizza. :)

Until later...

Ack. There is no emoticon for what I am feeling right now.

I've been meaning to talk about this since I watched this Sunday's episode of the Simpsons but just haven't taken the time until now. (The quote in the title has nothing to do with this other than that it is from a Simpsons episode, and it makes me laugh.)

It's an interesting thing to see your industry get lambasted on the Simpsons. For those who missed it, a quick recap: Mr. Burns cuts prescription drug benefits at the nuclear plant to save money. Eventually, other organizations follow suit, and essentially no one in Springfield is able to get medicine anymore. Several clips are shown of the response from the medical community on the news, including Dr. Hibbert decked out in all promotional material advertising various drugs. He is eventually joined by a group of women who dance using poles that look like pill bottles and have a pharmaceutical company's name emblazoned across the back of their shorts. Homer and Grampa Simpson go to Canada to smuggle cheap drugs back into the US, but are eventually caught. When Smithers falls ill, Mr. Burns helps get more drugs from Canada (If he cut out the prescription benefits, the drugs are expensive not illegal, so why didn't the billionaire just buy them? Don't ask.) and, finally realizing how important the benefits are, restores prescription drug benefits to all full-time employees. Homer, entering the kitchen at the end of the episode: "Good news, Burns made me a free-lance contractor."

As I've said in both my profile and in earlier entries, I work for a pharmaceutical company. I personally may not have agreed with all the view points in the show, but the bottom line is that it was hilarious. Making fun of my livelihood or not, I laughed at this episode more than many of the recent Simpsons. I love that this show has the ability to use humor to make a point and spark discussion. I love that after all these years, the show is still able to look at our society and satirize some of the most current issues. I love that, even though the main part of the show was talking about drug companies, with the ending they pointed out the flawed HR policies of so many companies in all industries.

Needless to say, the workplace was buzzing on Tuesday (Monday was MLK day, remember?). After talking to several people, it seemed that I wasn't the only one that was more interested in the fact that it was funny than that both sides of the issue weren't addressed.

I won't get into the arguing the merits of the episode. Some things I may agree with, and others not so much. Regardless, I'm not going to sit here and be a pharmaceutical industry apologist. That's neither my style nor my point. I have no problem admitting that things are not perfect, and anyone who would tell you that about his industry would be a fool. Jonathan Swift once said, "Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own." Not so, Jonathan. I looked into that glass, saw my own face, and it was funny.

Until later...

An Exercise in Futility

I am going to attempt to keep my blog apolitical as much as possible (I do, however, reserve the right to change my mind at any point), but today I am going to discuss a couple of political issues, but since I will be any equal-opportunity ranter, I feel no remorse about doing so.

Tomorrow a "protest" is supposed to occur. All people who do not support the war are being called upon to not spend any money tomorrow. Don't buy gas, don't buy groceries, don't buy anything. I'm not going to sit here and tell you or anyone else what to think of the war. I just want to say that I hate the idea of this protest. I find it both pointless and tasteless. Why, you ask.

First of all, the idea that a single day where people do not buy anything will make any difference is absurd. If you wish to actually impact anything, you must make an actual change. This follows the same logic as the recent "Don't buy gasoline" day. Even if no one bought gas on that day, everyone still ended up buying the same amount. If no one goes out and buys groceries tomorrow, do you think that everyone is going to go hungry? Obviously not, people will buy groceries (and everything else they need) on another day. What has been proven? Nothing.

For the sake of argument, let's assume a point can be made. What is that point, and who is on the receiving end of it? If you stop buying all goods and services tomorrow, how much will it impact the administration you believe is waging an unfair war? Not too much. If all of a sudden, money stops flowing into grocery stores and restaurants and little Mom and Pop hardware stores, do you think that will change the situation in Iraq? The direct impact is going to be on your friends, your neighbors, your coworker's kid trying to pay his way through college, the people closest to you. Why should you harm them for the sake of making a point that may or may not even be noticed? Is it the fault of all of these people that we went to war? If the current administration makes decisions you don't like, should you take it out on the person that lives across the street? This is the same logic that led the "Freedom Fries" lunacy recently. The people in favor of going to war with Iraq were screaming for bans of all things French or German. Stop drinking French wine and eating French cheese. Don't go visit Germany. Their governments dared to oppose the opinion of our own, and people felt the need to punish the vineyard owner who may or may not even share her government's opinion and the dairy farmer who may or may not even be a supporter of his current elected officials. Why punish those with whom you have no disagreement?

On the flip-side, we have the nearly-ubiquitous "Support Our Troops" ribbons. It seems that almost every other car I see on the road has at least one of these, be it a magnetic ribbon affixed to the side or a sticker on the rear window. Are we to think that, aside from being the aesthetic equivalent of gum on the underside of one's shoe, the ribbons are to imply that anyone not showcasing them is not supporting the troops? They would seem to be saying something like that. Oh, I see. They're about "raising awareness." Of course, because no one is actually aware that there is a war going on and citizens of our country and others are dying everyday. After all that's never on the news.

Just like with the protest issue above, this is being approached the wrong way. We don't need to raise awareness of the troops; I assure you everyone is well aware of their situation. You want to support the troops? Good, so do I. Stop spending money on ribbons that serve no purpose except to make someone more money. If all the money spent on these ribbons were collected, how much would there be? How much good could be done with it? How much support could be given to the troops in the form of needed supplies?

Whether we are talking about a protest that is at once too small in scale and too broad in scope or a ribbon affixed to the side of one's vehicle, we are talking about the same thing. People looking for a way to make a big point and a big change by doing almost nothing. This is why I chose the title "An Exercise in Futility" today. Change is difficult, my friends. If you want something done, you must be willing to do something about it. There is no quick fix.

Sorry for today's ranting. Tomorrow we should return to our regularly scheduled programming: Pointless, soap-box free ramblings.

Until later...

These are my confessions...(with apologies to Usher)

Fortunately, (unlike Usher) my confessions have nothing to do with impregnating a woman I hardly know. And while I am on that subject, am I the only one that thinks that Confessions Part II has the one of the strangest premises ever for a hit song? A song entirely about confessing not only infidelity, but that you've cheated enough that you got your "chick on the side" pregnant? Seriously? What's next? Confessing that your mistress gave you chlamydia? Oh well, sorry for the digression. On to my confessions for the day.

Part I.

I am a snooze-aholic. When my alarm goes off in the morning, I simply cannot get out of bed right away. OK, maybe I should rephrase that, because I can and do get out of bed. You see, to prevent the repeated snoozes, I have placed my alarm clock across the room. My original thought was that if I have to get up, walk around the bed and across the room I would be awake enough that I would simply stay up and start getting ready. Riiiiiight. This morning, I hit the button at least six times. I have a very serious problem, but the twelve step program just leads me to the snooze button.

Part II.

Tonight is the first episode of the new season of American Idol, and I promised myself that I would not watch again. During the first two seasons, I watched quasi-religiously. Near the end of the second season, I decided that I needed to stop. I wasn't going to watch at all in season three, but everytime I think I'm out they pull me back in. I eventually gave up near the end of the season and was convinced (again) that I wouldn't watch anymore. I'll give you one guess as to what is on in the background right this very moment. Yep, you got it.

Here's the problem: I look back at the previous shows and realize that I simply don't care who wins. I am not a huge fan of most of the music performed on the show, and I have not ever purchased, nor is it likely that I will ever purchase the music of any idol contestant. So why do I watch and keep watching? After a few episodes, I'm committed and can't handle not knowing what happens even if I don't care. The thing that draws me in first is the auditions, and I don't mean the good ones. I start watching because it's hard to believe that that there are people out there that misguided about their own abilities and because it's so easy to laugh at these same people. That's right, I'm confessing right here, right now that I only watch this show to laugh at the poor talentless people getting their dreams shattered on national television? I don't care about the people that are any good. I don't care about the people that succeed. I only care about the people who have lost all contact with reality and are willing to make complete fools of themselves for a chance at "stardom." Does that make me a bad person?

YES! As a matter of fact, I think it does!

Until later...

Holiday! Celebrate!

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and I am off work. So is the Post Office and probably your bank.

I'm not going to complain about having a day off of work, nor will I complain about having a day to honor the work of Dr. King. I think both of those are wonderful things, and I would like to see both of them more often. I won't, however, pretend that I understand the way we honor people with days like today. Would you like to celebrate a leader of the Civil Rights movement? Don't do anything for day. How about for the veterans of wars or those who have given their lives in service to our country? Three-day weekend, baby! How should we properly show appreciation for the work force of our nation? By not working, of course.

Like I said, I'm not complaining about the holiday or the day off of work. I'm merely suggesting that if these days (Martin Luther King Day, Veteran's Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Presidents' Day, etc.) are important then maybe, just maybe, we should try to find something better to do to ensure that those we are supposedly remembering do not end up forgotten, save for a single day when we all get to sleep in.

Until later...

Allez Cuisine!!

Tonight was the premier of Iron Chef America on the Food Network...Wait...

Before you continue reading, let me remind you that I did warn you in my profile that I am a nerd. I just wanted to make sure that we were all clear on that before I went any further. Ok? Let's resume.

Tonight was the premier of Iron Chef America on the Food Network. I am a huge fan of the original so I was both excited and apprehensive about this new series. After seeing the first episode, I'm still somewhat conflicted about the whole thing. I'm not going to go point by point to break this down, but I will talk about a few things I like better and a few things I like less as well as share some of my thoughts on this specific episode.

I really don't get the new "chairman." Originally we had Takeshi Kaga (apparently a fairly accomplished Japanese stage actor) who played the eccentric rich guy perfectly: over the top, but only because it fit with the character. Now we have his supposed nephew whose major roles before this included the hero's Iroquois sidekick who was remarkably adept at martial arts in the highly overrated Le Pact de Loups (or The Brotherhood of the Wolf in the US) or playing one of the main roles in Double Dragon, which, for any of you who are IMDB fiends like me, is in the bottom 100 of all time according to that site. If his acting skills are always like they are on ICA, I wouldn't be surprised to see more of his movies in that not so distinguished list.

One of the changes that I really didn't like was the format. The original included most, if not all, of the background material at the beginning of the show. The remainder of the show consisted of the battle itself, which was shown as if it were a live sporting event. Commentary was given on what was happening at that moment and there was a sense of urgency to everything. Iron Chef America jumps almost immediately into the battle and is constantly interrupting the flow with background information and recaps. The sense of urgency is gone, and so is what made it feel unique.

It's very tempting to complain about the floor reporter who seemed to mispronounce everything, but I can't really compare since Ota was always dubbed into English and the person doing the voiceover certainly had plenty of time to get it right. Again going back to that lack of urgency, I really missed Ota breaking in with a "Fukui-San" a dozen or so times throughout the battle.

On the commentator(s), I wasn't sure what to think. In the original IC, we had a baseball announcer doing most of the commentary with Doc Hattori as the expert filling us in on all the details. On ICA, we have Alton Brown filling both of these roles. I actually really like Alton Brown (more on that another day, another blog), and I felt that he did a good job...but I still think he needed someone else to interact with a little more.

The biggest difference that I felt was for the better was the increased interaction with the chefs themselves. We got to hear them talking to their assistants, each other and the host. This rarely happened on the original IC.

Specifics on the episode from tonight: I have to admit that I was looking forward to this episode specifically for a couple of reasons. I spent a large portion of my formative years in the Southwestern US and both Southwestern and authentic Mexican cuisines hold a special place in my heart (or is it stomach).

I also happen to be a big fan of Rick Bayless. He has an absolutely wonderful show on PBS called "Mexico One Plate at a Time." If you haven't seen this yet, please check it out. He does a great job of not only showing recipes and techniques to make great dishes, but he also brings in the culture of Mexico that underlies all that wonderful food.

I have a couple of his cookbooks, and you would be hard pressed to find a better guacamole recipe than the Guacamole Clasico in his "Mexico One Plate at a Time" cookbook. I look forward to that everytime the tomatoes and avocados are good in the produce department.

Between Christmas and New Year, we met some of MK's family in Chicago and one of the places we ate during the trip was Frontera Grill, owned by Rick Bayless and his wife. I had enchiladas with a wonderful traditional Oaxacan mole and would gladly go back anytime.

I enjoyed seeing the two somewhat similar, yet very different chefs battle tonight, but I really wanted to see Bobby Flay stick with the neo-Southwestern style for which he is known. I guess I was expecting an all-out chile competition, rather than Flay's surprisingly eclectic collection of dishes.

Overall, I enjoyed the show, but it still can't compete with the original. And, yes, I lied. I did end up going point by point to compare. What else did you expect from me?

Until later...

Allow me to introduce myself

I suppose for a first post I should explain who I am. You could just click on my profile, but, realistically, would you bother? That's what I thought.

I am a 28 year old microbiologist working for "a major pharmaceutical company." (How Wheel of Fortune was that?) I have been married for about 6 and a half years (since May of 1998) to a wonderful woman (who I'll refer to as MK throughout the blog). Currently, we live in the Kalamazoo, Michigan area and spend our time complaining about the weather. We don't have kids yet. I feel I have enough responsibility right now taking care of a dog that is smarter than me, a bird that won't stop laying eggs, and a tortoise that should outlive me.

What else is there to know about me? I'm the guy that people go to when they have a random question they want answered. I may or may not know the answer already, but everyone knows that I'm just a little on the obsessive side and can't rest until I know the answer myself. My penchant for trivia is the source of the name of this blog. Until later...