School, the Government, and some rocks!

Its Hump Day. Apparently some sort of camel, or a hill will be prevalent today. I'm not sure yet. It is Wednesday and I am going on 2 plus weeks of no work to do. So I have plenty of time to blog, read lots of articles on news websites, and my college books.

On Monday I started my 3 set of 8 week courses at Central Texas College. I'm taking physical geology, government 2, and statistics. Statistics start in another week or so, its online so it will all be on my own time. Government seems to be fun, geology alot funner. I'm just hoping I can get into a school to complete a full on bachelors degree.

I am not well versed in politics, as most Americans today are not. We see the candidates on television damning each other. We hear the ads on the radio whispering to us to vote correctly. We hear the CNN's, the FOX news, and the MSNBC's tell us who is right and wrong. The "experts" give us information/opinions on what should and should not be done for the candidates to win the Presidency. We are charged as normal citizens to pick and choose the candidate we feel most likely to represent us. But its the electoral college that does that. We just go in and do a vote just in case. I guess in a way the popular vote counts by telling our congressman and women, and senators who the people like. I'm still unclear as to how the whole process works.

And that is why I am taking government 2! Government 1 was a great class. I learned that no matter how many times I would read something, none of it made any sense at all. People explain things to me, and the next day I completely forget. I have retained some information though. I know to win a congressional seat you need to spend in excess of 1 million dollars. To become a senator you need to spend about 2 million. The spending does not mean you will win, it just means you have a good chance of winning.

Either way, the government should focus on what the people want, working in the confines of the Constitution, and they should realize they are working for the public(not lobbyists).

Geology- By far the most exciting class for me(at least I hope it is). Rocks, minerals, dirt, sand, erosion, human interaction, planetary buildup......... Environmental studies! On paper and most of the book is boring as hell. The pictures in the book look really neat. I need to know and understand the processes of the Earth. I actually enjoy knowing how the Earth works. Not the world, the Earth. The world is a complicated mess or governments, terrorists, idealists, and people who just want to live with limited interaction from crazy people.

The geology class is full of people. I think the teacher said 39?? It is a required class, but damn! The building barely has A/C now, and all those people in one room make it even hotter. Most of them are mouth breathers- this equates to 5 to 10 degrees added to the room temperature over 30 minutes. Add in the Texas heat making people sweat and you have the most horrendous, foul smelling room. I tolerate it by thinking of South Korea or Iraq "honey-suckers". Its a good class though, and the teacher is pretty rad.

In conclusion, government is important. The Earth is cool. And I'm bored at work yet again.

Everyone should look at Ron Paul, or Gary Johnson(not sure if he is still running). I don't agree with all of Ron Paul's ideas or Johnson either. But I do know Obama is not helping America by giving handouts. Romney is unsure of himself. And this Ryan fellow that Romney picked may beat up Romney at some point. At some point the best we can do is pick a President via shortest straw.

Why did I do that? And new ideas to change the worlds mind about .......

As the 5 of you who read my amazing blog know I have started doing Insanity. Yes the infomercial workout sensation that beckons you to lose weight by spending a nice, crisp 100 dollar bill. Why did I choose this one? What am I doing about the loss of 100 dollars? And does it work?

First off I chose this one because the "host" or "trainer" Shaun T. looked and sounded as though he wanted me to choose this one. And my brother and I chose it together. You don't need oodles of gear like P90X. No gym membership. And once you start, the moves are easy to remember.

I don't look at me losing the money. I look at it as losing weight. Having to catch my breath from walking to and from places, just isn't cool. Having to see myself in the mirror each day, huge gut and all, was not appealing to me. And I felt horrible.

Insanity totally works, but you have to put in the effort. Of course anything will work if you put in the effort. I just like Insanity because Shaun T. makes me feel like he is right there with me. Of course I know he isn't.

I'm slowly losing the weight, gaining self confidence, and rethinking my habits. Namely drinking and smoking. I like a cold beer and jager-bombs. I like to smoke. I really like to smoke alot. But neither one of those things actually make me feel better. The drinking does to a point, but the I pass out and wake up with a hangover and I feel like crap. I smell bad, because I start sweating out the barley, hops, and whatever else they decided to put in the beer mixture.

Smoking only causes me to smell even better!(sarcastically said while inhaling on a camel blue) Its a cool look for me... If I was Don Draper. But, I am no Don Draper. I cannot sale ketchup popsicles to a woman with white gloves. And I damn sure can't have a scotch at work. Plus, I look horrible in suits.

I'm really bored at work so I decided to write this.

As I'm looking back on what I have written, its almost as if I am trying to convince myself that I need to stop these things. Will I? One day I am hoping to stop smoking. I think I will keep the beer just in case. Maybe no more jager-bombs for a bit.

Why is my butt so big? Because I keep my beaver tail hidden!

As I grow older I realize that I am going to gain weight. I realized that my hearing will begin to diminish. I know that at some point I will become even more grumpy than I have been in my younger years. So when did my butt get so big? When did my gut get so big?

I blame Bud Light/Jager bombs, Dr. Pepper/Big Red, Cheeseburgers and a lazy attitude. I said goodbye to the Army lifestyle around October of 2010. I was in Iraq. I had made up my mind to end my career as a military man and move on to something "better". I gained weight, I lost all motivation for what I did, and I quit giving my all.

Fast forward a few months and I gave my farewell speech to Alpha Company in Kansas. That was a sad day. Not a "boo hoo, I'm gonna need a tissue", but more of "am I really doing this?' The next few weeks were a blur. I left Kansas, moved back to Temple, Texas and started reintegrating myself into society as a civilian. I drank everyday, I slept late, I ate way too much.

When I left for Arizona I stopped drinking mostly, but I kept eating. Delicious mexican food, amazing cheeseburgers, Whataburger. I drank only the finest 44 ounce Dr. Peppers and ate the fattiest snack foods. I was physically bulking up for a winter sleep that I would never partake in, partly because I am not a bear.

When I came back to Temple, I moved in with my little brother. My room was upstairs, and for about 14 steps, they seemed to be the longest steps ever. I would be out of breathe going up and down them. I still ate horribly, I drank alot and I kept up my liquid diet of Dr. Peppers and Big Reds.

The day my brother, his fiance and I moved into our newly rented house I noticed a large mirror in the bathroom that was now mine. The first shower I took, I scared the crap out of myself. Who was this large, overweight, beast of a man. I wasn't even a beast, I was a pudgy, dumpy, slouching mess. I won't say I was disgusted, but i was embarrassed.

Last week I ordered Insanity. I weighed myself too, 245 lbs. WHAT THE HELL! I have never been this big! I have let myself go, way beyond anything I have ever known. I'm hoping this video will get me motivated enough to lose some weight. Thanks go to my brother for doing it with me, otherwise I would probably stop at the first sign of pain.

The weight gain bothered me, frustrated me, and got me depressed at some points. I would lose my breathe while walking(smoking doesn't help either). I could barely play frisbee golf without getting sore. I have clothes that I purchased while in the Army that I can't even wear anymore.

When I would tell myself that it didn't bother me that people made fun of my beer gut, or my "fat ass, or my "chubby ness" I lied. I hated that person, I hated myself(for that brief moment). I would drown myself in beer or food. I was unhealthy in all the wrong ways.

My goal isn't to lose weight so that I can run a marathon, hike a mountain, or battle androids. I am losing weight because I am tired of my stomach hiding my feet from me. I am tired of going out of breathe from tying my shoes, walking to my truck, or going up a flight of stairs. I am not that big, but enough is enough. I want my old clothes back, I want my guitar to sit in front of my when I play, not on my side.

My motivation is that big mirror in the bathroom, My brother for helping me, and the thought of my ass crack showing. No one wants to see my ass crack when I bend over to tie my shoe. I'm not going to live forever, but I don't want to shorten my life any more than I already have.

GOAL 1 - lose 25 pounds in 2 months.
GOAL 2 - Quit Smoking
GOAL 3 -  lose 45 pounds in a year

Catch up to the past few months!

HEY! Its been way too long since I last posted. I've been slacking.... or I've been at school or work. But that is no excuse for leaving my 5 followers out of the loop! HAHA....

Okay, so as most of you know I have already gone to and finished guitar building school in Arizona. It was a good experience, and now I realize that I would love to do that full time, but it just doesn't pay the bills. I still owe the school some money, so I don't have my guitars yet, but I will have them one day.

I moved back to Texas and am now working for a government contractor, and going to school at CTC for Environmental Science. I'm hoping to finish up with an Environmental Engineering degree at some point.

Work is work. Boring sometimes, fun sometimes, but its always work and its a paycheck that helps with things like rent and food and gas. If you are in the military now and contemplating on getting out or staying in. STAY IN! It sucks while you are there sometimes, going away for a week, a month or a year. However, in the end it is worth all that to retire and get a little extra each month. Plus you forge relationships with people, when you leave them they seem to slowly diminish. On part of both parties, but still. It sucks.

School is awesome. I loved every minute of guitar building school. Learning the ins and outs of the build process and making a tree stump into a playable instrument. I also found out that I love to build amplifiers. It has to do something with the electricity or what have you.

Environmental Science classes have not started yet, but I do enjoy my CTC classes. So far, History I, GOVT I, Speech, and Comp 2 are complete. I'm signed up for more classes that start in a week or so and I am so ready to get going. Although I have to relearn algebra, its going good.

I am trying to work out my schedule to be able to spend more time with friends, take care of other projects and get into building guitars once again. Its a long tedious process, but my education comes first. Followed by my job, and then beer, and then finally sleep. So in between all of those things I am making time. I'm thinking I may give up beer to allow more time to sleep, or see friends.

Hope everyone is good. I have not bought a penguin yet.

Follow your heart.... but make sure you don't take it all the way out, you need it to live.