bragging rights - round 1

Today was the last day of the first round of the Biggest Loser in our office.....drum roll..... I won!!!!! I lost 15.4 pounds and won 155.00. WOOO HOOO. I have been very consistent with smart choices for food. I no longer even care about fattening foods really because dropping this weight is so much more exciting then any possible food could ever be, at least for today. As the saying goes:

"Nothing tastes as good as thin feels."

Next week we will start round two, which will be much more difficult because many of the participants are getting closer to their goal weight. I will be adding daily exercise and light weights to my arsenal. By the first week of May, I believe I will have reached my goal, never to return to the past "fat pants era".

Happy Monday!

my letter to President Obama

Dear President Obama,

I am hopeful that people everywhere will be inspired by you and your leadership and aim to be “better.” Whether it is a child in school, a single mother, a CEO of a corporation, or a politician who has forgotten his purpose, each will look to you and be reminded of the enormous responsibilities, endless choices and wonderful opportunities we all face. I think that an empowered and optimistic America will, in fact, create a better America and will begin to mend the world.

I will only ask you to do one thing in this letter; please see to it that legislation is passed through Congress allowing Federal funding of technological research and development in the field of stem-cell research including embryonic stem cells.

I have the utmost confidence in you and I wish you and your family well. Thank you for being the one, “that won” Ohio and the presidency.

Trevor P.
Ohio
Aka. Unlikely Burrito

conference room at work

Just want to say that I waited a long time for this day, just to get rid of Bush, but today was even better than I ever expected because I believe we just inaugurated possibly the best-ever man for the job. I have really come to embraced Obama's philosophy and his vision. I would be lying if I didn't say I am very excited for this change!

I have a bit of sorrow for those who are no longer here to share this moment, those who went before and paved the way for this day in so many ways.

Now, the time for work has begun and it begins with me in my home, office and life.

I will never be the same.

a personal observation

So the other day, maybe a week or so ago, a video tape of a leader of Hamas was being shown on television and he was saying something like, “I am going to kill you [Israelis], it won’t be a “picnic” and Gaza will be you graveyard.” In all honesty, his words seemed incredibly immature, shallow, and staged like in a poorly written play, directed by a pre-adolescent boy, or some low budget sci-fi when the awful monster spews G-rated evil. He sounded like he needed a time-out and a nap. I just couldn’t believe it, it seemed surreal.

I pondered my reaction to this Hamas clip many times over the next several days. I came to the conclusion that I had become personally detached.

Americans have been almost entirely shielded from all images of combat, death, and human suffering for the last eight years. Remember even in the Iraqi war, people were actually fired for publishing images of American flag draped coffins. This all leads to callousness, coldness and a detachment of personal responsibility and empathy. Personal involvement is thwarted; political pressure on our government is lessened. Withholding images depicting the atrocities and the ravages of war squelches outrage.

I started to note general opinions put forth by everyday Americans. People, like myself, who are not well educated regarding this ongoing conflict. People who are not even remotely qualified to imagine what could possibly lead to a lasting resolution. In doing so, I was able to identify various “talking points” that many people were just regurgitating. They heard it; it made sense at the time, now they professed it to be the truth and/or their opinion. It appeared all very contrived and controlled.

In the end I could only reason: Peace will come when people, and when I say people I mean individuals, demand peace above all else. Peace will happen when the weak and the powerful, the poor and the wealthy, the armed and the unarmed choose peace as their ultimate goal.

Currently and moving forward, I choose to fight my own complacently and support peace, which is all I truly know I can do.

Peace~

UB

Veterans for Peace

Red Cross

United for Peace and Justice