Did I Finally Find It?
December 21, 2010 By 2 Comments
Since I realized in January of this year that I had gained back all of the weight I lost in Paraguay (about 30 lbs) I have been trying to get it back off. I would be OK for a week but would quickly lose steam. I couldn’t stop cheating. I lost and gained 10 lbs probably four or five times throughout the year, never getting below 300 again (my lowest recorded weight in Paraguay was 267).
Last Tuesday, I think that ended.
Steven linked me to an article plugging a book by a guy named Tim Ferriss called The 4-Hour Body
The gist is that you eat 3 or 4 times a day, but you eat only protein, legumes, and vegetables. Something from each category, as much as you feel like eating. The point is there’s absolutely no starving yourself. This is not a low-calorie diet, it’s simply a change in the types of food I’m eating. For example, this morning I scrambled two eggs with a bunch of peppers, onions, and some pinto beans. Essentially I have stopped eating white carbohydrates (bread, pasta, rice, etc.) and started eating legumes (lentils, beans) and piling on the veggies. This is rigidly adhered to for six days; on the seventh (Saturdays) I eat the way I used to.
I found that it was very easy to eat this restricted diet without feeling that I was depriving myself. The legumes and protein keep you feeling satisfied. I even successfully – for literally the first time in my life – was able to say no to donuts TWICE last week. I don’t even crave the sweets we have in our area at work, and I think it’s because I don’t eat sugar anymore (except on Saturdays). I can’t even explain to you how revolutionary that is to me. That has literally never happened before in my life. Sweets have *always* been a challenge to me. Now they’re just only sometimes slightly annoying.
You may be waiting for the results. Remember, the *only* thing I have changed this week was the type of food I ate. I didn’t even exercise this week (I should, I just didn’t). I was astounded when I weighed myself this morning. Last Tuesday morning I weighed 309.8 pounds.
This morning I weighed 303.8. It blows my mind that I lost six pounds this week only by changing the type of food I ate. I don’t understand it, but I accept it.
I don’t want to make this post any longer, so I’ll do a part two later on. There are a few more things I want to tell you about, but it’ll be at least as long as this post.
I’ll end by posting my numbers. In addition to weight, I’ll be taking measurements of my arms, legs, waist, and hips. I’m going to try to consistently update them. I know I’ve said that in the past and haven’t been consistent, but I’ve also never been as gung ho about fat loss as this. I’m definitely amped enough to go another week.
December 21, 2010
Total inches: 199.7
Weight: 303.8
-j
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(Some Pun Using “Stamp”)
December 8, 2010 By Leave a Comment
In the midst of my current liquidation I remembered the other day that I have a decent stamp collection. 
I did a quick search to see what it might be worth. The answer made me laugh. Basically it was that it’s not worth as much as I think it is.
When you think about it, nothing has any monetary value unless you sell it, and I don’t think philately is a high-demand hobby. So the stuff I have is only worth what people would pay for it. I was all set to start selling the stamps as a craft project. I figured 100 or so for a couple bucks.
I listed 40 items on ebay last night. Most of them were relists of previous items – cds, baseball cards, NACSAR memorabilia, comics – but I decided to try the stamp thing and I listed one item.
Now I guess I expected to sell them, but already?! Out of the 40 items I have listed, the stamps got the first bite. I never would have though they would be what sold first. I guess it’s time to list more.
As of this moment, I know conclusively that my stamp collection is worth at least $.99 (plus $1.99 shipping).
-j
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Book Experiment
December 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment
I may have mentioned this before, but just before going down to Paraguay I stopped to drop off some clothes at a thrift store in town. I happened upon their book section and *went nuts*. I think they were even having half-off sale or something. I found several books by authors I really wanted to read so I ended up buying a bunch.
Fast forward to recently. I found out selling books on Amazon is a good idea. The two thoughts merged into one: what if I could sell books on Amazon using the thrift store as my supplier?
So I decided to do an experiment. Last weekend I went to the thrift store and found hundreds of hardcover books in *near mint* condition. Mostly the only defect was the price stickers they put on them. I had decided I would spend $10 on books to see if I could at least break even. I went just over $8. I got several by authors I knew and a couple by authors I didn’t and headed home.
At home I listed the books on Amazon and immediately felt I had made a poor decision. You see, if you’re a piddly seller like I am, Amazon charges you $.99 per sale plus a percentage of the sale price. They charge more for shipping that you end up paying, so in the end you get some of that in addition to the price of the book. So someone might end up paying $3.98 for a book, including shipping, but Amazon takes out enough that you get about $2.70. Then you have to ship it, so by the time you buy the envelope and mail it, you’ve made a dime. That’s how it is for books that sell for $.99.
Almost all of the books I listed have a couple hundred listings on Amazon, dozens of which were $.01. That works fine for sellers who can afford the $40 a month sort-of membership fee. I can’t, so Amazon takes $.99 per book. Maybe you see where I’m going with this.
I’m basically losing money. For example, today I sold the first one I listed from the thrift store. I paid $.99 for it and it sold for $.49. I get $2.07 from Amazon, and I still have to ship it. It’ll probably ship for $2.20, but I also need an envelope. In the end, I will have paid $2.75 for the ability to receive $2.07 from Amazon. That’s a net loss of $1.18.
Like I said, it was an experiment. Some of the books I ended up listing for more than the minimum figuring *eventually* the others would be gone, but unless I can get like 10 books for $1, I probably won’t do this again. I may end up breaking even when it’s all said and done.
http://www.amazon.com/shops/jayzilla
-j
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Adventures in Giving Stuff Away
November 25, 2010 By 1 Comment
In my last post, I talked about different ways I’m making a little bit of extra money (stress on “little bit”). In this one I want to talk about a couple other things I’m doing to remove the clutter from my life, but I think in a more meaningful way than just throwing it out.
Paperback Swap(www.paperbackswap.com)
I came across this website probably three years ago and thought it was a brilliant idea. Quite simply, you list books you have that you wouldn’t mind giving up. In return for giving up books, you get credit to ask for books from other members. The only thing you pay is shipping on the books you send. PBS even has you print the packaging! With two sheets of paper you can generally wrap any book. The address is printed, and you can opt to have PBS figure out your shipping and you drop it in your mailbox, or you can just take it to the post office. I’ve gotten some really good books from PBS. The “paper” is a misnomer; you can also get hardcover and audiobooks. Listing your first 10 books gets you two free credits. At this point, it’s US only.
They have two sister sites, swapacd.com and swapadvd.com. The processes are slightly different, but the idea is the same.
Goodreads (www.goodreads.com)
Goodreads is like Facebook for book readers. I mention this site because they also have a swap feature. The main differences in terms of money I have noticed between this and Paperback Swap is that you don’t need any credits to request a book, and you only pay for the shipping of the books you request.
Freecycle (www.freecycle.org)
Freecycle is probably just how it sounds. Different cities have Freecycle groups, and it works pretty simply. You post something you want to get rid of but don’t want to throw out, and you get a bunch of requests. Who gets your stuff is totally determined by you. Nearly everything I’ve ever posted to Freecycle has been removed from my clutter (this came in very handy before going to Paraguay). Additionally, if you are able to keep track of the list of offers, if something comes up that you need, you can request as well.
Most cities organize their lists themselves. For example, the Richmond group uses Yahoo Groups to handle the listings and requests. Here, at least, the admins are very good and keep the riffraff out. I think it’s pretty safe, and generally the folks on Freecycle are friendly.
Goodwill
Finally, if you’ve got things you can’t get rid of, you can always take it to Goodwill. Everyone knows this; it’s no secret. What most people probably *don’t* do is keep track of what they donate to itemize on their taxes. Before I went to Paraguay, I catalogued everything I donated, and my tax preparer asked me for the list. I ended up donating over $450 worth of deductions from my taxes. That’s a win-win!
So between these several avenues, I’m successfully removing Stuff from my life and feeling good about it. Sometimes it takes a bit of effort, but if you decide it’s worth your time, then it becomes an investment in a more peaceful future.
-j
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Adventures in Retail
November 17, 2010 By 4 Comments
When I came back from Paraguay, I realized I had a lot of Stuff. Stuff, capital S, is the things you have that you don’t need, never use, and probably never will again. Some might call it “clutter”. Piles of CDs, shelves of books (stacked 2 deep), movies, games, toys, the list goes on. Stuff is actually more stressful than we realize (think about the last time you had to move), and I decided I didn’t want to deal with it anymore. As I unpacked my boxes upon arriving back home, I knew there were really only a couple things I wanted to do with it, and one of them was not ever move it again.
So I started selling things on ebay. You may be surprised to realize what people will actually buy. For example, I sold a CD on ebay for $152. No, the decimal isn’t missing. A single CD I had sold for one-hundred and fifty-two dollars. Currently I have some pogs listed. Out of the 25 items I listed this week, including a poster of Babe Ruth, the pogs are the hot item. They have more views than the rest of my items combined and are selling for much more than I expected. I’m even selling a used calendar from 1995 that people actually put on their watch list.
I’ve learned a few things during this adventure. One, I *love* selling things. Part of that is because two, I love removing the clutter from my life, and three, I like making money from it. Now, I’m not making much, but it’s more than I had before. I’m using it to pay down debt. I also like the fact that if I ever move again, I don’t have to take these things with me.
The point is this: if you have lots of Stuff and you could use a bit of extra cash, try selling it online. Books, CDs, DVDs, and games can go on Amazon. Everything else (I even sold an empty box…no lie) goes on ebay. I can talk more about it in a different post if I get asked about it, but it’s really not that difficult. Try it; you might be surprised how things turn out.
-j
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Reader poll: New Blog Name
October 18, 2010 By 4 Comments
Let’s pretend I’m starting a new blog about the garden I’m going to grow next year. Which name is catchier:
barelyfarming
or
barelyafarmer
Please to weigh in in the comments.
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Amazing
October 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment
The 33 miners who have been stuck for 69 days 2300 feet below the surface of the earth in Chile are being rescued today.
When I heard a couple days ago that they would begin pulling them up this week, I praised God. They got stuck in August, and for a long time no one thought they would be able to be rescued until November. I couldn’t imagine being shut off from everything for that long. They say you go crazy after a month in pitch blackness. These men don’t look crazy.
I don’t know why I’m being so emotionally affected by this rescue. But the whole thing makes me give glory to God. The reporters tell us that the miners held chapel in the shaft, that they say there were 34 people in the mine (themselves and the Lord). And when miner number 9 came out and after hugging his wife he knelt down and prayed for a good while. Tears started coming to my eyes, and all I could do was say “Amen” with him. A shirt was made especially for these miners and they are all wearing it as they come up the shaft. When I realized that it says “Thank You, Lord” I almost lost it.
Yesterday I heard something interesting. The number 33 is significant for at least three reasons, and I think one of them is the number of days early they are being rescued. I would imagine that the spiritual significance of that number hasn’t been lost on the miners either.
God is very good. In the middle of catastrophe He can be found, especially when He is called upon. They have called upon Him, and I believe He is being glorified today.
Just in case you have no idea what I’m talking about, here’s a link:
Miracle at the Mine
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For The American With Only Slightly Paraguayan Tastes…
September 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment
If you can find this, I recommend trying some. I’ve seen several different kinds of bottled mate around here, and so far Honest Tea has the best. Still, I’d say go for the original if you can. However if the loose yerba and water doesn’t appeal to your North American sensibilities, this is a viable second option.
-j
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Unnecessary, Yes. Delicious, Absolutely.
September 25, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Today’s lunch marks the end of the first annual Rib Weekend. Take a walk with me, will you?
My first attempt at smoking ribs
About 3 weeks ago Steven and I were at his house watching the Travel Channel and saw Man vs. Food in Richmond. He went to Buzz & Ned’s, a famous local barbecue joint. Really good food, and the ribs looked amazing on TV, so we decided to go there the next time he was in town.
Tonight is the pancake supper at church and he came down for it, so we chose this weekend to patronize Buzz & Neds. I had found some country ribs on sale, and since he was coming on Thursday I decided to try my hand at some smoking. The turned out really well; Steven said it was the best food I’ve ever served him.
Friday we ate at Buzz and Neds. We got two meals and split them to sort of sample the fare. Really, really good. But I knew there was one more place we had to go before he left.
Ronnie has a parking lot, a trailer, and a smoker. That’s his “store”. Ronnie also makes the best ribs you will eat in Richmond. He makes the best ribs I’ve ever eaten. We took it easy at lunch, only getting a few bones each, but Steven said they are the best in town also.
We decided by the end of lunch that we would have a Rib Weekend every year. So this marks the first annual. Next year we’ll be in Waldorf seeing if they can match up.
If we had been thinking about that earlier, I would have taken photos of each. We’ll save that for the second annual.
-j
I'm Jason, and I like to write.