I have to go through Gwinnett County to get to work and they just started their school year today. Since I ride a motorocycle to work everyday (weather permitting) I am very observant of the other vehicles around me. Today I noticed something frightening. The driver of a school bus was just laughing happily as she yapped on her cell phone. It is dangerous enough that she is on the phone and driving that huge piece of metal, but this woman’s cheese-wagon was about one-quarter full of children. I did not think to get the number of the bus at the time, but I can say this: The bus was at the intersection of Mink Livsey Rd. and Lee Rd. at approximately 8:20 AM. If you know this woman then please tell her to do her job correctly or to do a different job.

//End of rant

The Atkins diet has been around for some time now and like many “diets” it has had fluctuating levels of popularity. I have met some people who swear by it and I have met others who said that it was just another one of those shim-sham diets that didn’t work. Yes I know that there are skeptics for everything and, yes, I know that Dr. Robert Atkins (not related to me) was reportedly obese when he died, but that does not mean the diet does not work. Overall I had heard pretty good things about the Atkins diet and I could not think of a more appropriately named diet for me.
I have discovered that my mid-section had become…well…larger than it should be so I decided to do something about it. I started the diet about two and a half weeks ago and I must say that I am impressed with the results thus far. I lost about 10 lbs. after two weeks! I am rarely hungry because I am eating all the time (it seems that way anyway). I just don’t eat many carbs. During the initial stages of the diet you are supposed to consume no more than 20 grams of carbs per day. I got a little gung-ho about it and have made it a goal to get as close to 0 grams per day as possible. So far I am doing pretty well. I eat a lot of meat, eggs, and cheese (specially selected). The idea of eating all of that stuff seemed a bit unhealthy, but I did more reading about this diet and found that despite all of the cholesterol intake my personal cholesterol count would actually go down.

What many people seem to misunderstand about the Atkins diet is the “0 carb” period. Many people that I have talked to have had the idea that the Atkins diet requires one to have no carbs…forever. This is not the case, of course. That would indeed be unhealthy During the initial two weeks (some go longer of their own choice) one is to keep a really low carb count (less then 20). After that period, when the dieter has seen some good results for their efforts and has reach their desired weight, Atkins encourages the dieter to slowly increase their carb intake and maintain a healthy diet.So far I have lost just over ten pounds and I am very happy about. I have a way to go before I reach my desired weight, but I know that I will get there before long.

I have also started going to the gym during my lunch breaks. My company offers its employees a free membership to Gold’s Gym. A number of my co-workers as well as my management go to the gym at lunch so we all ride together to get there. It is nice to have not only the support at home, but also the support at the office. Since I have started working out and exercising I feel better than I have felt in years.

Wish me luck. I will update you on my progress.

For more information about the Atkins diet visit their website at www.atkins.com.

/ End of Begging /

It wasn’t that long ago when the must-have toy was Tickle-Me Elmo. I could not turn around in a store without seeing some kind of elmofied fan wear or toy. Elmo, Elmo, Elmo was everywhere. I was not bothered though. I was insulated because I did not have kids. I was protected from all that is Elmo by my childlessness. Call it salvation.

My protection from Elmo ended, however. My son was born. I was still spared much of onslaught of Elmo marketing, but not all of it. He had a few toys that looked like Elmo. But I was yet uninitiated. Now my son is in kindergarten and I have selected from a list some educational software to help my son advance more easily. Elmo’s Preschool is on that list. As an educational tool the software is good. It covers letters, numbers, colors, shapes, and some other necessary stuff. The downside is that the little red beast that the software is themed from talks almost nonstop as the child interacts with it. I have been exposed to the true nature of Elmo’s evil. It is it’s voice. I have yet to understand while the little furry devil has to say his own name all the time (besides the obvious marketing reasons). Perhaps it is good for education and likability…perhaps not. My son has been using the software tonight for about a half of an hour and I am about crack. I have turned the volume down on it some but I think it is just the tone of the creature’s voice that grates on me. Apparently tone overpowers volume in this case. It’s devilry permeates the walls.

I hope that I will get used to it’s maddening intonation since the software is helpful, but I doubt it will happen. I would hate to have to sacrifice my son’s education because of just one bug-eyed little devil-puppet. We will see.

We went with a friend to the local Toyota dealership and checked out one of their new Prius models. Apparently we were lucky to get to do that since the prius is in high demand and most lots don’t keep more than one or two in stock. I went to the dealership with a certain degree of skepticism about this hybrid car. I knew that the car would be tiny and underpowered at the least. I also assumed that in order for this car to get the mileage that was advertised it would have to be lacking in amenities to save power or weight. I have to say that I was quite pleasantly surprised. On the outside the Prius seemed to be just another squat economy car. I found out quickly that it was quite roomy on the inside and it had plenty of niceties to boot. This thing even had a keyless entry and starter system. That means that the driver can keep the key-fob in his pocket and can start the car by simply pressing the “Power” button. There was a snazzy touch-screen display in the dash that displayed all of the information about the car (charging system and such) and allowed the driver to adjust the stereo, climate, and navigational systems. So far I was impressed, but I was still waiting to be disappointed by the lack of power the car had. I pressed the “Power” button. The dash-lights and the screen turned on, but there was no noise. The sales guy said “Okay, now you can go.” The car seemed to me to be turned off. I pressed the accelerator and the car took off like any other car. I drove down the road and was surprised at the amount of power that it actually displayed. No, the car is not some high-powered sports car, but the car had more than enough power to get me where I want to go and to deal with Atlanta’s traffic. The Toyota Prius achieves 60 mpg in the city and around 50 mpg on the highway (it gets better miles in the city because it is primarily using its electric engine at low speeds).

I have driven the car a couple of times now and I have determined that this will be my next car. Frankly my wife and I are tired of spending over $400 per month for fuel. The price of the car is right for us to seriously consider making that purchase. I definitely recommend giving one a test drive if you are looking or just have a spare few minutes.

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