Category: health

What’s In Your Wallet? / Tidbits

There is no better feeling than being able to pay off a credit card. I did that today. Two in fact. It’s been a financial struggle since the breakup a year ago. My debt is still higher than when we met but now at a much more manageable level. The cards in question were two of my higher interest cards that were just killing me. Three to go! Plus the revolving credit lines, the department store cards… Wait, what was I happy about?

I’ve had to put the motorcycle purchase on hold. I was hoping to be caught up enough by Christmas to swing it but it ain’t gonna happen. As much as I want it, it’s just not in the cards just yet. Plus, I think I mentioned I’m planning on moving again. A friend is buying a condo and wants a roommate. This arrangement suits me as I get to save money. Say it w/me. “Saving money is good!”

Switching gears, I got a nice card/pic from Tim today. He made me lunch one day before the vacation. While we were hanging out, he was showing off his Halloween costume. In the process, he made me wear this ridiculous looking hat w/hippie hair on it. Having forgot my own camera, he snapped of a pic of it. I have to admit, it’s funny. So the card includes a mini 2006 calendar w/the hippie pic square in the middle. HIGH-larious! Thank you Tim. (I’ll try to scan and post later)

In other exciting news, I finally went to the doc today and got some drugs for my sore throat. Knowing me as well as he does, he wanted to know if it could be something sexually related. I guess it’s possible but haven’t had that many shinanigans lately. (If only!) Scouts honor, I swear! (like the scouts have any honor left but that’s a nut to crack later.) Back on the subject, I ran into my friend mentioned above at the docs office. I thought he was stalling on the whole buying a condo thing but looks like he is right on tract. I really don’t wanna move over xmas (again) but the faster I get into a cheaper place the better.

On the family front, looks like our new found bond is quickly going down the shitter. My oldest brother has mysteriously decided to move to Mississipi. And my youngest brother has split w/his wife. They still work together which makes for some intersting drama I bet. Add to that, my siblings have yet to purchase the headstone for Dad’s grave. I’m not at all surprised though. I have a sneaky suspicion I’ll end up paying for it. I don’t mind the cost. I just wish for once my siblings could get their shit together and keep it that way. That’s probably asking too much but one can dream right? Actually, my younger brother and I have been communicating via text messages and emails. This normally wouldn’t be news but he isn’t exactly computer savy. You talking about a clan that didn’t have a phone until the mid 80’s. For all my bitchin, I’m glad he finally made the jump into the millenium. It’s nice to chat more than once a month.

I’m getting hungry (that’s code for cranky) so more later.

Gym Tips II

So here is one more small tip I have for the gym novices out there. Ok, well not even for novices. This is for anyone who goes to the gym.

Puh-lease! for the love of toast, spare the cologne when you are planning on working out. If you wanna do your fellow gym bunnies a favor, invest in a strong acting, light smelling anti-persperant and forgo the cologne.

Picture courtesy of Steamworks Online
*no this isn’t him but I thought it was a nice pic*

Today, I’m working out and this rather attractive fellow comes up next to me and starts his Jane Fonda routine. Meaning he was working AT working out, not really making a real effort. I normally could care less but every time he lifted his arms I got a blast of his overpowering cologne. I kept my tongue as I was almost done anyway. Afterwards, I couldn’t wait to blog about it. If you are that worried about stink, take a freaking shower before you work out.

Evil Smokers

**If you are a smoker, you probably shouldn’t read this post as I’m sure to offend w/my comments below.**

That said, I absolutely detest cigarettes and everything that comes w/that. I grew up in a house w/both parents smoking. Lucky for me, I never picked up the nasty habit. So for those of you who do smoke and you went ahead and read this against my advice, I have just a few suggestions for ya.

1) No one thinks it is cool that you can talk w/your cigarette in your mouth.
2) The next time you wonder “whats wrong w/me?” Its not you, its the cigs.
3) No, it is not polite to stand in a crowd and just spew nasty smoke into the air.
4) What is the point of going outside if you stand in front of the door & let the smoke blow right back into the building?
5) No, I’m not moving away from you because you’re ugly, you stink.
6) No, I don’t have a light. Not everyone has such a disgusting habit.

I’m leaving the Castro today and I’m standing on the corner waiting for the light. Idiot Smoker walks up and stands just in front of me and then blows out a huge lung full of smoke, which of course, blows right into my face. I let him have it! Needless to say, I didn’t make a new fan. Nasty, filthy, disgusting habit. I think I’d rather have my head set on fire and put out w/a sledge hammer than smoke a cigarette. blech!

Offended? Well, I told you not to read.

Moody

I’m in a mood today. I seem very antsy and haven’t quite nailed the reason(s) why yet. Having not felt this way in a while, its annoying the frell out of me.

Life has been keeping me a bit distracted lately so I haven’t worked on the new template much. No biggie as life should come first. You’ll just have to suffer thru the boring template for now I’m afraid. I used a site building tool thats bundled w/my domain to throw something together but I don’t really like it. Wrong colors and just not me. You can check it out at www.sciber.net. This is my old domain which I eventually plan to phase out.

I did manage to get quite a bit of the domestic crap done over the weekend. I’m home now waiting for my groceries to show up. I absolutely detest domestic chores. The worst being laundry. UGH! Anyway, I’m hoping the delivery guy shows up soon as I want to hit the gym today. I seem to be 100% recovered from the flu. I wonder if thats why I’m feeling ansy?

Hand Injury

I can’t remember if I mentioned it but I injured my hand a week or so ago. I went to the doc yesterday. I was a tad scared I had fractured it. As it turns out, I tore a tendon across my 3rd finger on my left hand. Nothing major apparently and the doc says while my hand may swell a bit from typing too much, its not serious enough to worry about any long term problems. Good news considering how typing I do w/my job. The fact that I have a mild case of carpel tunnel syndrome in that arm made it look worse than it was.

The odd part is it only seems to bother me while typing. I can work out and do most tasks w/o any discomfort. I wonder how many folks would kill for an injury like that! lol

Super Size Me Big Daddy

I’m a bit pissed. Mainly because this subject has always hit a nerve w/me. Straight from one of Dunner’s rants comes today’s madness. I had my own rant all ready to roll until I got distracted doing my usual blog rolling. And it’s not even the post that has me up in arms. It’s one of the comments to his post! The readers digest version, Dunner was ranting about a guy who was HUGELY obese and had an operation to shave off a huge chunk of himself. The guy, who is still overweight afterwards, was celebrating it. Not to mention, the government got stuck w/most of the bill. So basically, you and I got to pay for his new slimmer look. One person had the unmitigated gall to compare being obese w/being gay. I think someone needs an ole fashioned ass-whoopin.

Ok, ok, before WW (weight watchers) sends the death squad after me, let me clear up a few things. Yes, people who are overweight are often mistreated. I don’t condone that in any form. Making fun of someone who is overweight is not ok. On the same token, hiding behind a flimsy untrue excuse is just as “not ok”. Obesity is a huge problem (no pun intended) in the US and we need to start at the grade school level educating our children on how to eat better and healthier.

I spent most of my early adult life in Houston, TX. Which in case you missed it, is the #1 fattest city in the US. If you don’t believe me check out this month’s men’s fitness along w/consumer reports mag for the last 5 years. SF also has a large “bear” population which is just a fancy way of saying overweight gay guys.

Moving on. It is a documented fact that some people are born predisposed to being overweight. It doesn’t mean they are born fat or that they need to be fat. It just means genetically, their body LOVES food. Said people, can lead normal healthy LEAN lives w/just a bit of extra oversight. Now, for a reality check. Less than 1% of the population suffers from this sort of genetic booboo. What annoys me is more and more people try to absolve themselves of any sort of personal responsibility by blaming all their woes on someone or something else. Lets cover a few more facts.

1) The US is and has been the worlds fattest country for the last 10 years.
2) If you add the #2 & #3 runners up together, the US is STILL #1.
3) If it was just genetics,then you’d see a much more global dispersion of obesity.

It boils down to simple math folks. Genetic or not, if you take in more calories than your burn, you are gonna gain weight. I can’t explain it any simpler than that. However, there is no cure for being gay. I can’t diet or get a surgery to become “not gay”. Anyone comparing the two gets my full uncensored wrath. So for all you folks out there in “denial”, I’m here to give you a wake up call. Trying to pawn off your lazy behaviors on genetics ain’t holding water. Close your chops, get off your ass and do something about it! I’m happy to give you workout tips!

Gym Shinnanigans & Revelations

I’ve resigned myself to the fact that this is not my month! I’ve had more drama in one month than all of the previous months this year. For whatever reason, the fates have decided this is my month of trials. I guess its good for my blog because it gives me something to rant about. (G)

I ended up switching gyms today. Not by choice mind you. I’ve been a Gold’s member for just over 4 years (since I moved to SF). So today, I go in like usual and the desk guy tells me my membership is up and I need to renew. I’m thinking no biggie, I’ll just renew and be done w/it. As you can guess, things didn’t go quite so smoothly. Apparently, the City & County has decided not to renew their corporate plan w/Golds. Not that it should affect me as I’m already a current member right? Wrong! Golds wanted to charge me full price for a new yearly membership! Basically, double what I normally pay to renew. Rather than make a big deal about it, I just politely said, “no thanks, I’ll take my business elsewhere.” So then he says, “well unless you renew right now, you will not be able to work out today.” Didn’t matter that my membership actually expired today. At that point, I wanted to say something rather nasty but held my tongue.

I’ll admit, my sarcasm does get the best of me at times. Today was different. I guess I sort of expected it as this has been the month from hell. I’m a big believer in metaphysical energies, chakras, etc and I’ve just drained my “pool” this month. I have had a lot dumped on my plate lately and I’m fed up w/being upset by problems that are out of my control.

So back to the story, I leave the gym and figure, while I’m out, I’ll shop around. Apprehensively, I checked out 24 Hour Fitness. Five minutes in the door I knew it was a no-go. The energy was all wrong and the sales guy was a bumbling idiot who couldn’t answer one single question w/o looking it up. I’ll leave it at that. There is another gym called Crunch just a few blocks from where I work. I guess you could call it a specialty gym. It’s owned by Ballys and it sort of has a reputation for being pricey. I thought “what the hell, it can’t hurt to check.” Immediately in the door, I got a really good feel from the layout and they had most of the equipment I like. They also have a climbing wall, boxing ring, and quite a few amenities I’m not used too. I thought those might be extra but, it was all included. The sales rep. was personable and knowledgeable. She answered every question w/o having to once look it up or ask someone. She wasn’t pushy and never once tried to strongarm me. That goes a long way in my book. The only thing worse than a pushy salesman is a pushy lawyer. *shivers* I’m sure you’ve guessed by now, I joined Crunch. You’d be right. What you haven’t guessed is how well I made out. The sales rep. and I struck up a great conversation and I discovered she is looking into becoming a Paramedic as well. We had a long talk about my work and I gave her some advice on what to do. She ended up bending over backwards to get me a really great rate; even better than the original quote. In the end, I got the membership for a steal! Some might say it was my Karma coming back to me for not being nasty to the Manager at Golds. Who am I to disagree. (G)

I guess the point of all this ramble is simple. The older I get the more I realize, there are times in life when we are faced w/tasks or problems that can be very demoralizing. It is how we respond to these problems that define our character and well being. You can try to control every aspect of your life and go absolutely mad doing it. Or, you can realize that no matter what you do, sometimes shit happens. You just have to brace yourself, roll up your sleeves, and slough thru it. All the while, remembering who you are and what you hope to accomplish.

Ok, I’m done now. I don’t about you but, I feel MUCH better! (big grin)

Me, Oh So Long Ago

Being a typical vain fag, I’m a member of several online gay muscle sites. I’ve gotten alot of requests from guys wanting to know what I looked like before I started working out.

Well folks, seeing is believing! The pic below is me circa 1990. This is me before I knew what working out was all about. (It was also me when I HAD hair).

Moby Circa 1990
As you can see, I’ve changed quite a bit since then. My goal was never to be huge, just bigger. I didn’t actually start working out in earnest until early 2000. I’ve never been one to work out so I could impress others. I got tired of being so damn skinny a good gust a wind could blow me away. Now don’t get me wrong, I like the attention I get now that I’m bigger. That said, when I started working out for my reasons, I stuck w/it. Its become a part of my life that I can’t go without. I don’t live for the gym but I go often.

On a related note, I got the chance to experiment w/a low impact steroid about a year ago after recovering from a bad case of food poisoning. By low impact I mean a pill version w/limited side-effects. While it did give me a really good pump, I found that my sex drive increased exponentially. And while this may sound like a good thing, let me explain. I’ve always had a strong libido. If you know me, you know I ain’t lyin’. So after about 2 weeks, it got to the point where I could not focus on a single task without thinking about sex. When I could get it, where, from who, how often, etc. After a while, it began to affect my daily routine and my job. I know what your thinking…”I’d kill for that” right? Wrong! When it starts affecting your life on a fundamental level, its time to quit. And quit I did.

Afterwards, I did manage to keep a little of the bulk I had gained but not much. What goes up must come down. The same is true for the body. While I peaked performance on the drug, I went thru a dip after coming off of it. My desire for sex evaporated. For the first time in my life, I knew what it meant to not be in the mood. I also couldn’t muster the same amount of energy to workout. I’d go for days w/o even going to the gym. After about 2 weeks I leveled out to normal again. I can only imagine what the stronger injectable versions would do to you. Yikes!

So the long and short of it is simple. I’m proof positive anyone can workout and improve their appearance. Its no always easy but, if it was everyone would do it.

Thats my story officer and I’m sticking to it!