Tuesdays with Muerte

Pexels Brigham Young University (BYU) students, like students anywhere else, are susceptible to the winter blues. Here are some common ways students might cope with the winter season: Outdoor Activities : Taking advantage of  winter intramural sports and activities  can be a great way to stay active and enjoy the season. Additionally, students might prefer going out on their own by taking advantage of local, world-class skiing or snowboarding resorts Alta or Snowbird , or simply taking a walk in the snow. Don't like the cold? Soak in the sunshine by heading to St. George for a day. Indoor Recreation : Keep up with exercise routines and plan weekly activities to break the winter routine. BYU and Provo offer indoor recreational facilities where students can engage in activities like pickleball, or  swimming at the Richards Building (RB), rock climbing at the Quarry, or playing indoor activities with friends during open court times at the RB gyms. Whatever indoor activit...

Before We Can Love Others, We Must First Love Ourselves​ "I don’t think anyone can grow unless he’s loved exactly as he is now, appreciated for what he is rather than what he will be. Knowing that we can be loved exactly as we are gives us all the best opportunity for growing into the healthiest of people."  “When we love a person, we accept him or her exactly as is: the lovely with the unlovely, the strong with the fearful, the true mixed in with the façade, and of course, the only way we can do it is by accepting ourselves that way.”  “We need to help people to discover the true meaning of love. Love is generally confused with dependence. Those of us who have grown in true love know that we can love only in proportion to our capacity for independence.” Loving Others Is an Effortful Acceptance of Who They Are Presently “Love isn't a state of perfect caring. It is an active noun like struggle. To love someone is to strive to accept that person exactly the way...

Intro If you're like me, buffets are a big deal. When I fail to cram as much food into my digestive system as possible before paying the bill, I feel like I've cheated myself. In other words, the higher my food-t0-dollar ratio, the wider my grin at the end of the meal. To prepare, I sometimes search online for  tips on how to   gorge  oneself . I recently found this gem, written by  Uncle Ben  on Quora ; I thought I'd pass it along. Photo by Ian Sane Week Before the Buffet Sign up today for  Tucanos Birthday club  at least 24 hours in advance. To maximize consumption on the day of the buffet, you must begin your stomach conditioning at least a week ahead of time. This means that, for at least one meal a day, you must eat till you're full (even if it's just bread).  Once you think you're full, drink as much water as you can. This stretches  your stomach for the upcoming feast.  As the big day approaches, do some bri...

Sleep Paralysis My Story To most people, this will sound crazy. When I was in high school, my alarm woke me up at 5:40am for seminary as usual. But this time, I felt paralyzed—like my body was playing a practical joke on itself!  In my early morning dilerium, I thought I must be dreaming and my first reaction was to rollover and fall back to sleep.  But then I realized I was conscious and literally couldn’t move.  I attempted to rationally assess my situation.  It seemed logical that the Devil, who wanted to keep me from attending seminary, had somehow gain power over my physical body and had pinned me down on my own bed.  " GET OFF ME, SATAN! " I cried out in my mind (as I was unable to speak out loud).  The moments following my auto-exorcism are still a bit fuzzy.  But ultimately, I ended up in my bathroom, showering the sleep out of my eyes and praising God. I shared the experience later with my seminary class.  They probably all though...

Image Source Surprisingly, fatigue may boost creative powers. For most adults, problems that require open-ended thinking are often best tackled in the evening when they are tired, according to a 2011 study in the journal Thinking & Reasoning. When 428 students were asked to solve a series of two types of problems, requiring either analytical or novel thinking, their performance on the second type was best at non-peak times of day when they were tired, according to the study led by Mareike Wieth, an assistant professor of psychological sciences at Albion College in Michigan. (Their performance on analytical problems didn't change over the course of the day.) Fatigue, Dr. Wieth says, may allow the mind to wander more freely to explore alternative solutions. Article Source  

About 5 years ago, my body said to me, "stop drinking that sugar syrup.  I don't like it anymore!" Then I said, "But remember when you were seven and I purchased that Dr. Pepper for you at the school carnaval?  You said it was the best thing you had ever experienced." "I was SEVEN," Body retorted!  "I didn't know what I wanted.  I was still tasting things for the first time and let's face it, I could handle whatever amount of sugar you sent my way.  Now…not so much." And that was that.  From then on, I agreed to only ingest soda pop in special social situations (including but not limited to dares ). Thanks to the following diagram, provided by  Term Life Insurance , I understand why my body felt the way it did.

Preface Note: I do not do drugs.  I just have weird dreams. Last night, I was groggily flipping through TV channels, when a sitcom called Bored To Death caught my attention. A budding writer bravely approached a famous film director at a NYC gala. I don't know why, but I immediate resonated with the writer's character. The prestigious director: "So, I really love your [writing]: dark, funny, perverted…beautiful. You must really suffer from the terrifying clarity of your vision." Novelist: "Thank you. I do suffer. Thank you." Cut to my Life "Yes! Thank you. I Do! I do suffer. Daily!" The words echoed in my mind as if I were responding to the director. "You have no idea what I go through every night. AND THE MORNINGS! The mornings are worse. When I fall back asleep, my visions become more lucid than before. And don't even get me started on what afternoon naps do to me!" I've been steeling cat-naps recently. (...

A recent study has been done to study the correlation between eating and sleeping. The following article might be particularly interesting especially for those coping with jet lag, stereotypical college students and LDS bishops. “ Not eating for 12-16 hours can help people quickly reset their sleep-wake cycle, according to a study from the Harvard Medical School. This discovery can drastically improve a person’s ability to cope with jet lag or adjust to working late shifts. Scientists have long known that our circadian rhythm is regulated by our exposure to light. Now they have found a second “food clock” that takes over when we are hungry. This mechanism probably evolved to make sure starving mammals don’t go to sleep when they should be foraging for food… It usually takes people a week to fully adjust to a new time zone or sleeping schedule. To think that this new “food clock” hack can help you change your internal clock in one day is mind boggling.”

After every P90X workout, Tony recommends his "special" recovery drink. It was obviously too expensive for me. Here are some alternatives: At first, I just ate a banana, some pretzels (potassium + sodium = electrolytes) and a tall glass of water (rehydration). Then I switched to chocolate milk. (It was on sale.) Now, I'm going to concoct my own version of Gatoraid: Tanneraid! I tried my first batch of Tanneraid . It wasn't very good. Next time, I'll put in fewer electrolytes.

A great girl knew that I was having trouble meeting my P90X goal of 4000 calories a day. Today, she took me out for a sandwich at Mimi's Cafe worth 1900 calories. She wanted to repay me for helping her with a little problem she had. The sandwich was incredible! It was called Turkey Pesto on Ciablahblah bread. Here's a picture. I ordered onion rings as a side just so it is would add to the total calories. I imagine with all the buttery zuchini and banana bread that I ate, the full meal was over 2500! Thanks Tracey! p.s. Tracey told me that Mimi's Cafe Hot Chocolate is just Costco packets in a nice cup with whipped cream on top. p.p.s. Beware, Mimi's Cafe doesn't sell any dish under 700 calories; and that is a salad without dressing!

Instead of posting pictures of each of my battle wounds, I'll just show you one, and let you imagine the rest: Wounds: Welt on my left hip Welt on my left side Welt on my left thigh Welt on my right side and slightly back scrape on my right thumb scrapes on both my left and right shins bruised nail on the middle finger of my left hand abrasions between my third and fourth fingers of my left hand

P-90X Workout Visual Results After 30 Days Note: This shoot was taken after only three weeks of the same routine and one programmed rest week. Click here to compare with photos from Day 1 Written Description of My 30-Day Results The challenge part about this workout is not finding the time to do it; that's easy. It's finding the time to consume the calories required to meet my weight goal. So far, I haven't gained a pound. In fact, I lost a hole in my belt. I've calculated that I need almost 3000 daily calories just to maintain my active lifestyle. Therefore, in order to gain 12 pounds in the next 2 months, I need to up my intake to about 4000. I do feel stronger, I find that I have more general endurance and I am always ready for any physical activity. I've found that after only 3x of Ab Ripper X, my stomach was a LOT more bumpy. The other muscle groups seem to be be solid now, where they may not have been before. I think I've buil...

The 45-year-old P90X poster "child", Tony Horton, says the same catch phrases over and over again. If you know Tony's voice, you'll particularly appreciate reading these: I hate it, but i love it! This is X for Xtreme, baby! I know it burns. GOOD JOB …So far. Do your best. Forget the rest! Don't forget to breath. Soft landings. Don't bang your joints; this is a low intensity exercise, like Spiderman, like Catman! This workout may be too intense for some of you right now, but that's why we have the pause button. Take a sip of water if you need it, but KEEP MOVING! The important thing is that you keep coming back every day. You gotta keep pressing play, keep pressing play, keep pressing play! Today, I asked myself the question, "Why did the Lord command us in Moroni to meet oft [weekly on the sabbath] to renew our baptismal covenants? Does the promise of the companionship of the Holy Spirit wear off, and therefore need to be ren...

Analysis paralysis! I'm approaching the 4th week of P90x, which is scheduled as a "rest week" in my workout regimen. Shall I take a photo at the beginning of that week or after the true 30 days?

My aunt, Charlene Ford, made some incredible kebabs at a family get together on Mother's Day 2009. Since then, I've probably made 3 or 4 separate batches of kebabs — I just can't get enough! ---------------- Listening to: Josh Groban - Oceano

Which gender of body-builders intimidate you more: Muscle Men or Women ? Let's see some examples from each gender: Muscle Men 1.  One of us does not belong... 2.  Roids much? 3.  Japanese Hans and Fronz 4.  These dudes are 2 Legit 2 Quit! 5. Mmmmmm,  sandwiches! 6.  School photo. Guess which guy experimented with las drogas :) Muscle Women 1. " Thanks to the past 3 years at the gym, Earl will never hurt me again." (Poor woman.) 2.  You worst nightmare! Possibly shopped? 3. T his one's got to be shopped. Note: Womens' breasts are composed of fat, not muscle. Many women bodybuilders have fakies implanted. 4.  Click to ENLARGE at your own peril. 5.  To view the source for this picture, just look at the dictionary under, "Thunder Thighs!" 6.  Yeah. I work out. 7.  I'd like to introduce you to my two good friends, "Imana" and "DOMINATE YOU INTO SUBMISSION!" Winn...

Preface : I realize that this post may seem out of the blue, inappropriate, and possibly even offensive. But for those whom it was written for, trust me, it makes complete sense.  If you start to feel uncomfortable, STOP reading and pick a different post. Friends of mine have been complaining recently about having unwanted junk in the trunk. I refrain from telling them that I wish I had a bigger booty!  It bothers me when some girls are overly sensitive about their weight. These girls ought to know that not everyone in the world thinks having a substantial caboose is such a bad thing…myself included. (Also see: Sir Mix-a-lot's one-hit-wonder, Baby Got Back .) I bet they wouldn't complain as much if they knew it was something I dreamed of having since childhood. I think my personal quest for obtaining the callipygian ideal stemmed from elementary school days when I was forced to sit through hours of assembles, forming permanent dents in my sits bones from sitting cross-le...

Full disclosure: This post has many generalizations. However, it is not going to be a Veg-Hatin' session. I aim to objectively look at the appeal of both of these preferred diets/life-styles and even share some anecdotal laughs from my own life. I encourage all 5 of my blog readers seriously consider the following: VEGANISM From Vegan.Org (The Official Website) What is a VEGAN? A vegan (pronounced VEE-gun) is someone who, for various reasons, chooses to avoid using or consuming animal products. While vegetarians choose not to use flesh foods, vegans also avoid dairy and eggs, as well as fur, leather, wool, down, and cosmetics or chemical products tested on animals. Why VEGAN?   Veganism, the natural extension of vegetarianism, is an integral component of a cruelty-free lifestyle. Living vegan provides numerous benefits to animals' lives, to the environment, and to our own health–through a healthy diet and lifestyle. Mission Story In 2001, when I was stil...