Monday, November 07, 2011

Chicago Bears Podcast - The Bear Garden

My friend Nick Jones and I have jumped into the world of podcasting.  We have a Chicago Bears podcast entitled "The Bear Garden Podcast", and you can find the blog page here.  So far we've recorded 10 episodes, and I think it's the best Chicago Bears podcast you can find on iTunes, so give it a listen!

Here's an excerpt from our 10th episode:

Here it is!  Let us just warn you...we didn't have much to talk about during the Bears' bye, so we flew in a special guest...our friend named Pete from Minnesota.  We cover some general Bears talk, but we also get to witness Nick after performing over 2 "Power Hours" by the time the show was over. Some of the random things we touch on: UTEP, Merril Hoge, Mike Adamle, Sweetness, Tom Skilling, Jeff Skilling, internet searching, AP, Hunter Hillenmeyer, Big Cat Williams.

Enjoy!

Friday, November 04, 2011

Should I Get a Kindle?

With Christmas right around the corner, I thought it would be a good time to re-post a nice little writeup my wife had on her love for her Amazon Kindle.  She tells me it's the best gift she's ever received, so I think it's safe to say she's happy with it!



I was so shocked when I opened my birthday/Mother's Day gift and saw that Mike had gotten me a Kindle. I had wanted one for a while since I absolutely love to read. I seriously think Amazon should put me on their payroll as an advertiser since I seem to promote the Kindle so much!



It seems that about half of the people I discuss the Kindle with tell me that they prefer actual books; maybe because of the smell, the feel & the idea of being able to see them stacked upon their bookshelves. Others seem very interested in the Kindle or another e-reader such as the Nook or even the iPad & want to know how I like it & what I like about it.

So, this blog post is to tell you the things I like or don't like about the Kindle.

The only thing I've found that I dislike about the Kindle is the fact that it's really hard to go back & find a part that you may want to re-read. It can take a while to click previous page over & over again if you don't know what chapter you may have been near. But what makes me love the Kindle so much?
  • It can store an endless amount of books in one small package. Perfect for times when you may be taking a trip or even going to the beach & you don't want to pack multiple books.
  • I absolutely adore the cute little case that holds my Kindle.
  • Perfect for a spur-of-the-moment buyer such as myself who loves instant gratification. I'm the type who is in need of a book, hears about an interesting one & immediately wants to run out & purchase it.
  • You can enlarge or minimize the print to your liking. I've found this most useful at the gym when I'm on the elliptical or treadmill and would normally be unable to read the print of an average book from that kind of distance. And since you don't need to open the book, it stays in place on whatever piece of equipment I happen to be working out on.
  • The pages don't need to be turned & you don't need to hold the book open which makes it so much easier to get comfortable in bed while reading.
  • There's a dictionary right at your finger tips. All you have to do is move the cursor right next to any word you may not know the meaning of &, poof, there's your answer!
  • Long battery life. In the the 2+ months I've owned my Kindle, I've only charged it twice. And I read a lot! I keep the wireless off unless I'm searching/buying a new book which definitely helps conserve the life of the battery.
  • Very easy on the eyes since it's not back-lit. I have a book light for it so I'm able to read in bed at night while Mike is sleeping. And since it's not back lit & has a non-glare screen, you can easily read it in bright sunlight.
  • Very user friendly. By no means am I a techy person & I'm easily able to navigate my way through the Kindle.


But what do I love most about the Kindle? The fact that Mike is now also the proud owner of one so we're able to spend our nights reading in bed, side by side, like an old married couple!
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Tuesday, February 15, 2011

What is the One Breakthrough Company with the Key to Global Commerce

I get emails from Motley Fool all the time, trying to get me to buy into one of their investment group emails or something.  Those guys are great at the extended, super long, extra special, wait for it, wait for it, now wait for it longer.....tease.  They get me to click on their stuff about 15% of the time just based off of curiosity.  Every time I think they're telling the truth that the "whole story" is just a click away....I find out they fibbed and they want you to sign up for one of their services first with no risk to me since I can cancel at any time.
 
Good thing we have the internet.  After a quick search for their latest teaser, a report based on a small Virginia firm called One Breakthrough Company with the Key to Global Commerce
I found out from a site called Stock Gumshoe that the company in question is most likely Rosetta Stone (RST).  I've never tried any of their products, so I have no idea whether this would be a good investment or not.  Has anyone reading this ever tried Rosetta Stone software?  I have a couple friends that gave it a shot and I'm looking in your direction guys!
 
Good luck to anyone that puts some money into RST.
 
 

Monday, February 07, 2011

Blend Fitness

So I'm going to start a new workout regimen starting tomorrow around 6 am. I signed up for this new gym called Blend Fitness in Lutz, FL, it's open 24 hours and it's kind of/sort of in the back of our subdivision (takes about 5 minutes to get there) so it's pretty convenient.

Now that I think about it, I could potentially ride my bike there in the morning and get 10-15 minutes of cardio out of the way before I even get there! Thanks for the idea, internet!

Anyways, I'm going to take measurements and stuff to see how much my body changes, and I'll post the changes here just so I can come back to it next year and reminisce to the good ol' days, when my body gets fat all over again. That's the spirit, Mike!

Waist: 42"
Right Bicep: 17 7/8"

Allison Pernecky, my little wife, helped me with the measurements and we took the waist measurement from just above where my hip bones ended. That's what the Google told us to do, so that' how we'll do it.

As for food and stuff, I think the first few weeks I'm just going to work out and not concentrate too much on my diet. I think my diet will improve naturally with me working out, it seems I eat better things when I'm actively working out than when I'm sedentary, so we'll so how that goes. After the first month or so I'll need to cut back on portions more, and concentrate more on what I'm putting into my body, but I don't want to shock it just yet.

I've asked some friends if they thought it would be a good idea to post pictures of me in my underwear to see how my body changes through the weeks and months...but they all said no. No idea why.


So we'll see what happens this time around. My goal is to weigh around 225 lbs and take inches off of my waist while adding inches to my arms. Thanks for reading.