The Big Question =D

The full Engagement story: =D

http://xmelzers.blogspot.com/2009/12/best-birthday-ever.html

Since I last posted:

Dan and Phyllis got married
I went back to Michigan
I've changed my driver's license
Gotten two eye infections
Went to the doctor's
Seen Melpan
And lots more

I leave with:

Ecclesiastes 5:10-11
"Whoever loves money never has money enough;
whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income.
This too is meaningless.
As goods increase, so do those who comsume them.
And what benefit are they to the owner excep to feast his eyes on them?"

So blunt. So in-your-face. So true.

Ugh

First, a sore throat (four wks ago)

Then, a runny nose (two wks ago)

And now, an infected eye

What's next, a broken bone?

Ugh. Must pray hard to get better!!!

The technology need to breakdown and process soybeans into soymilk did not exist over 40 years ago (I wouldn't be surprised). Does this mean that we asians haven't actually been drinking soymilk for a long time (most people would be surprised)?

Whooooaaa, this is my fourth week of work already....

Whew. What a whirlwind of two weeks. Now I am officially a resident in my new apartment, and its a mess. Be back later with pictures and stuff!

Time to grow up is now!

What's more depressing?

Losing a hockey game?

Or getting a speeding ticket?

I do wonder how much my insurance will spike after getting just one point on my driving record?

Third post in ten minutes. I wanted to apologize for the first one, which was made out of bitterness more than anything. I ought to be rebuked for that.

But now...check this article out:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soybean_oil#Oil

And now I quote this particular section:

"To produce soybean oil, the soybeans are cracked, adjusted for moisture content, rolled into flakes and solvent-extracted with commercial hexane. The oil is then refined, blended for different applications, and sometimes hydrogenated. Soybean oils, both liquid and partially hydrogenated, are exported abroad, sold as "vegetable oil," or end up in a wide variety of processed foods. The remaining soybean husks are used mainly as animal feed."

UGH?

- "adjusted" for moisture content?
- "solvent-extracted" with commercial "hexane"?!!
- "refined" and "blended"?????????

I don't know what some of the above means...but, would you seriously want to cook with something that has been all of the above?

I wouldn't, that's for sure.

If I were you, in the wake of the health system crisis and the obesity epidemic, please do yourself a favor and stay the !@#$% away from processed, polyunsaturated oils, especially soybean oil.

Instead, stick with monounsaturated oils: canola, olive, peanut....

Sorry for the random post. But...UGH!

Also, in the wake of our game seven loss, I wanted to voice my thoughts on a far more important issue: the health care system in the States. Yes, it is true that privatized insurance companies are making health care practically unaffordable for all but the richest people. Yes, it is true that medical care is overpriced and that greed is involved at all levels. Yes, it is also true that malpractice and corruption continued to plague the health system.

However, while the debate rages on a government controlled health care system versus a privatized system, I wanted to bring to attention that the average American citizen is just as much to blame for living an extremely unhealthy lifestyle. Look no further than our love for fast food, trans fats, and high fructose corn syrup, stuff that practically did not exist 40 years ago. And now, half of our nation's population is obese. I don't know if obesity leads to cancer, although I would not be surprised if it did. But it does lead to heart problems and bad joints and a bunch of other health problems that medical care can only address to a certain extent. The rest of us needs to be more responsible in taking care of our own bodies and whatnot. One has to wonder about all the health problems that come with eating unhealthy, processed foods and living a sedentary lifestyle. People can make choices, and if they continue to make the choice to live an unhealthy life, of course they're going to pay for it in the end with all those medical bills that could probably have been avoided had they ate healthier and what not. What a vicious cycle and a messed up world.

1. Our ex-mayor is a !@#$% who swindled the city of Detroit of a lot of things.
2. The auto industry, and the rest of the city is now on life support.
3. And now...a loss that probably hurts a lot more than game seven versus the Spurs in '05.

Clearly, nothing has gone right for Detroit over the last couple of years except for you-know-what in 2004 and 2008, and even critics continue to bash those years as rigged or fluky.

Lord have mercy on the city of Detroit before things get too depressing and people start rioting out of control. May the city bounce back and bring hope once again. Must think positive, not negative.

How to get 400 miles out of one tank of gas:

Don't use the A/C
Stay below 65 mph
Drive alone, not with four other people
And avoid accelerating and decelerating as much as possible.

=)

Tomorrow begins a journey unlike any that I have ever gone on before.

Final tally:

20 boxes
about 10 pieces of furniture

check out the floorplan of my new place:

http://www.camdencourtapts.com/efficiency.html

So...after 24+ years in Michigan (two or three in Ohio), I am finally out of here. It feels weird to sort through my closet, my desk, my bookshelves, my tables, my bedstands, and drawers for stuff that i want to 1). throw out for good, 2). keep and bring with me, 3). keep but not bring with me. the strange thing is that a good 75 to 80 percent of the stuff is pre college. hmm....

i started writing a blog entry in the hopes that my mind would get sorted out on this whole packing up business, but progress is quite stunted at the moment. better luck tomorrow, i guess....

Xanga is dead, so I have continued to follow the trend....