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Sunday SINS: 2nd Edition

iJason — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:00:17 +0000

Yep, it’s back….Welcome to the 2nd Edition of Sorry I’m Not Sorry aka Sunday SINS.

It’s been about 5 months since the 1st Edition and there’s a few thoughts and decisions that I would like to own up to.

I’ve been on two plane trips since the last SINS and I have decided that I really don’t like people that recline their seat on airplanes, especially on under one hour flights. We are already packed in there tight as it is. I don’t need you reclining all the way back into my already small personal space. It also makes it difficult to reach my laptop bag during the flight without bumping the back of your seat or when my son in his car seat (that you saw when getting in to your seat) is going to more easily accidentally kick your seat. So as long as you continue to recline your seat, it’s going to get bumped. Sorry I’m not sorry.

If you are under the age of 30 and smoke cigarettes, you’re an idiot. All of the education and dangers that my generation and younger has been made aware of, why do younger generations still smoke? It drives me nuts! I am close with a handful of those that are younger than me that still smoke and I love you all, but…..you’re an idiot! Sorry I’m not sorry.

If I see you slightly making an attempt to make a lane change without using a turn signal, I’m not going to slow to let you in. Sorry I’m not sorry.

I miss the cold and wish we could have at least three months of cold weather. I know it’s the “Sunshine State” and I don’t want it to be snow cold, but 50′s and 60′s during the day and mid 40′sin the evening would be awesome. I know most come here to get away from the cold, but I’d like to get a break from the heat and humidity. Sorry I’m not sorry.

Ahhhhhh…..these types of posts always feel good after they are done. If I offended anyone, well…..Sorry I’m not sorry.

No Soda For You!

iJason — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 00:00:05 +0000

(Source)

January was a little busier than planned along with an unplanned and unfortunate trip up north. Despite being busy and stressed, I was still able to lose 7lbs! A lot has to do with one of my goals for 2012….no soda/diet soda for one month. I really didn’t think I was going to be able to do it. I don’t think I have ever gone that long. I also tried to avoid artificial sweetener the best that I could with just the occasional Diet Snapple Iced Tea here and there. Normally Crystal Light is my backup during my soda hiatus, but it brings out the hunger monster in me.

I was going to have a Diet Coke after I reached one month, but I’ve decided to hold off to see how far I can take it. I have acquired a taste for unsweet tea which I never thought I could do considering the only way I would drink tea in the past was with some type of sweetener and a lot of it. I am very glad I have been able to acquire the taste because I can’t do only water. However even though water isn’t my favorite, it has been pretty much all of what I drink all day except for at dinner. My brain somehow thinks it needs something with flavor to compliment the food I eat. (Yeah, I’m a little weird.)

So that’s it for now. I aiming for a 10 lb loss with my March update. Hopefully I will have continued my no soda habit.

How Fast Time Flies!

iJason — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 00:00:56 +0000

Things have been really busy with travels, weddings, holidays, and some other things that I hope to share around this time next year. I also hope, at that time, to become a full time blogger too.

Due to the busy schedule, I also haven’t even had time to read some of my favorite bloggers posts and I haven’t been too inspired to write about anything. Well something recently got me inspired and I wanted to blog about it.

A couple of weekends ago was 18 years that my dad passed away. 18 years! Crazy! When he passed away, I lost a piece of happiness inside of me for many years until my wife and our son were able to completely bring it back. It’s been a normal day the last few years on the anniversary and I was able to just focus on the positive and the fun times with my dad. This year was the same, but then it hit me, that with it being 18 years, my dad has been gone now for close to half of my life! For some reason, that thought just threw me for a big mental loop. So many things to not get assistance with and so many memories that couldn’t be properly shared. So many new and awesome people to not properly introduce. My dad was really cool and everyone liked him. He had great sarcasm and he always made people laugh. Those are things about him I miss the most.

All of this “being gone half my life” thing has made me think of myself and my son and how far off the fitness path I have fallen in 2011. I don’t want my son to go through what I did and reach a point at an early age where he realizes I have been gone for half his life. This could probably eventually happen if I don’t make a change. I have to make this change and I have to do it now. Everyone always says that you have to do it for yourself. Well, while I agree, I believe that I also need to do it for those I love. My wife and son shouldn’t have to pay for my laziness. I don’t want my son to be getting ready for his high school graduation, go to put on a tie, and realize that his dad never taught him how to tie a tie. So something has to be done. A plan has to be set. A healthy lifestyle path must be followed. Fortunately, over the years I have gathered and learned the tools needed to live a healthy lifestyle. Unfortunately my lazy arse hasn’t utilized them!

So over the next week and a half, I am going to set some goals and make a plan for 2012. I’ve rambled on in posts before about how I’ve had some great motivation to finally live a healthy lifestyle. Let’s hope this one sticks!

If they have the Internet in heaven, Merry Christmas, Dad. We miss ya!

Thursday Thoughts: Steve Jobs

iJason — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 11:30:17 +0000

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As most of you already know, Steve Jobs passed away yesterday. I thought I would do a small blog post about my experiences with the technology that Jobs helped develop. Even though I’m a huge Google/Android fan, there is a lot of respect that I have for Jobs, Apple, and their products.

It’s crazy to think that I am only 4 months older than Apple, which was established on April, 1 1976 by Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne. The Apple I sold in July of 1976 for $666.66 which is the equivalency of a little over $2,500 in 2011 dollars. It’s amazing that an iPhone can do so many more things in such a smaller unit for $2oo today. I think the biggest genius of Jobs was his ability to see into the future with Xerox’s mouse driven graphical user interface (GUI) which helped develop the first Macintosh.

Does anyone remember this Super Bowl commercial?

I didn’t actually get to work with a Macintosh until my sophomore year in high school when I became the editor of the school paper. I think the name of the program we used was PageMaker. I definitely preferred using the Mac to my Windows 3.11 computer at home. I will never forget the paperclip trick for when the disk wouldn’t eject, which seemed to always happen at deadline time. After I finished high school, I unfortunately didn’t sit in front of an Apple computer for many many years due to college requirements and my eventual enjoyment of the Windows XP OS. I did however purchase my first Apple product, the iPod Nano, in 2006 and instantly became an Apple fan again. There are many that complain about iTunes but I think it’s great and always been user friendly. A few years later after my first Apple purchase, my father-in-law purchased a MacBook Pro. I was with him that day and learned a lot of the amazing features that Apple computers had to offer. The smooth transition of programs, practically no worries of virus attacks, long battery life, and the creative programs that came with the OS. I was now an even bigger fan! I unfortunately still haven’t been able to purchase a desktop or laptop due to cost, but I did get an iPad for Christmas in 2010. It doesn’t completely replace a laptop but it is definitely an awesome tech gadget to own with it’s capabilities and apps. My 2 year old son has even grasped the concept of using it and the game apps we downloaded for him. We recently used it to play movies for him on a long 12 hour car ride and it was definitely a savior.

The news of the passing of Jobs spread very fast on Twitter and Facebook last night. Even hours after the announcement, Twitter was still very active with Tweets about him. There is no doubt that his creativity and vision will definitely be missed. I hope that Apple continues on with that vision or strives to make it even better. Technology is growing exponentially and if Apple is able to keep moving forward with great products, I can only imagine what will be available when my son is my age.

Thank you Mr. Jobs for all of the great technology and for the Pixar movies that my family and friends enjoy. Most of all, thank you for making it cool to put an “i” in front of any word!

“Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me … Going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful… that’s what matters to me.” – Steve Jobs

Sunday SINS: 1st Edition

iJason — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 12:53:58 +0000

I read a great blog post last week over on Katy Widrick’s site that was inspired by Rachel Wilkerson. It’s time to stop feeling guilty and to start owning my thoughts and decisions.

Welcome to the First Edition of Sorry I’m Not Sorry.

Last week the wifey and I watched Bridesmaids. Definitely not very funny and definitely overrated. I can’t believe people compared it to The Hangover! You feel bad for the main character the whole movie. Also, there were just a lot of awkward and overdone-trying-to-be-funny scenes (i.e. the engagement party speeches scene and the doing crazy car tricks in front of the cop scene). I’ve seen plenty of what are considered by most to be “girl movies” with the wifey and I’ve found them funny as well as enjoyable enough to definitely watch again. So it’s not that I’m a guy and don’t get it. The movie just sucked. Sorry I’m not sorry.

I’ve tried tofu cheese before and other than having a medical reason not to eat regular cheese, why would you voluntarily eat that mess? It’s gross! Sorry I’m not sorry.

If someone posts nothing but political or religious posts all of the time on Facebook. I hide all posts from that person. I don’t want to “unfriend” them because hey, they are a friend for a reason. I just don’t believe in political or religious views being pushed on people. Sorry I’m not sorry. (Inspired by one of Katy’s.)

We vaccinate our son. Don’t preach to me about the supposed “proven” theories. Here’s a theory, I would rather vaccinate my son than not have him around at all. You can choose to not vaccinate your child, but our children are never playing together. Sorry I’m not sorry. (Inspired by Michelle’s awesome blog post.)

When I’m at a playground or a splash park with my toddler son and your much older child gets in my son’s face acting crazy or purposely knocks him over, how about actually being a parent, keep an eye on their activity and explain to them why what they are doing is wrong. I don’t ever want to say anything to the child because they usually don’t know better but it would be nice if their parent(s) helped out. Yes, parenting is challenging but not impossible. People that don’t make an effort, shouldn’t be allowed to reproduce. Sorry I’m not sorry.

What are you not sorry about?