I've been depressed lately, for reasons I can't really determine, but I have been, which is part of the reason why I've stayed away from my blog. When you're holed up in your own head, there's not much to say. I've also been very busy with the kids, and playing with the kids when I get home, and spending much less time in front of the computer. And I've been very busy at work. So anyway, here are some things that I've been thinking about:
- The Comcast DVR sucks. It's nice to be able to record the shows I'd like to watch, but it freezes in the middle of shows you're watching, sometimes, it won't record the whole show, only 10 minutes of a show. Sometimes it records the whole show, but try as you might, you can't watch past a certain point, or fast forward past that point. It's incredibly annoying, and I feel like this kind of stuff was just let through QA by Comcast because they're the big behemoth, and they're going to survive, even if this product offering sucks. Which it does.
- My second point, technology should just work. It really should. With proper maintenance, you should just be able to hit a button and have you car start. Your computer should just work. I do understand that the more moving parts something has, the harder it is to make sure that it will work all the time, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't make that our goal. It seems like we've all become accustomed to stuff failing and we're tired of complaining about it.
- The new Microsoft Anti-Spyware tool rocks. It's very very very good. If you have a legal copy of Windows, I suggest you grab it, and by legal, I mean that you didn't share your copy of Windows XP with your father-in-law and brother-in-law. Otherwise, stick with something like AdAware.
- I've hit my first weight loss plateau, which means my wife is bringing in cookies and other treats, and I'm indulging too much. And I need to exercise. A lot. (why did I have to choose the time between Christmas and Easter, and Girl Scout cookies days to lose weight? Because I want to be able to ride roller coasters without feeling like I'm going to suffocate and I want to set a good example for the kids)
I don't think you necessarily need to have a valid copy of windows. It doesn't explicitly say it won't work if you don't validate, it's just their tricky little way to get you to validate. I took the non-validation route (even though I'm running it on my legitimate copy of windows here at work) and it seems to be working fine. Those tricky Microsoft people.
Are you following any particular diet? I've been following the example of my best friend, with good results--he calls it the "50 Percent Solution," where you can eat all the foods you normally eat, but only in half portions. (No cheating by having six meals a day!)
In the past, I've found that my main reason for going off a diet has been to satisfy a forbidden craving (oh my god, i've got to have some apple pie, but it's high in carbs, but i've GOT to have it, so the hell with the diet!), and that doesn't happen here. Sometimes I'm a little hungry, but no cravings, because no food is forbidden.
Another plus--this diet has no book, no formal program, no guru, no celebrity endorsers. It's just simple math!
My friend got this idea from watching a horrible show on the Food Network called "Calorie Commando," where the chef attempts to create low-fat, low-cal versions of favorite dishes like tiramisu or bacon cheesburgers by using nauseating ingredients like sugar-free instant pudding or ground turkey breast and fat-free cheese. Ugh! His thought: Why not just eat half portions of the original, luscious, delectable food? Sure, it requires discipline, but not as much discipline as forswearing your favorites forever.
Just a thought. I've been doing this for a month, and the weight is coming off.