Wii Fit-ting

Most of you already know that Brian and I got a Nintendo Wii back in January. I really like the system; it's really easy to use and has games that I am actually interested in playing. There have been several hugely popular games to come out for the Wii: Wii Play (that we don't have), Guitar Hero (that we do have), Rock Band (we also have and it sort of sucks for the Wii, there are very few songs), and soon, Guitar Hero World Tour (which is pretty much like Rock Band, but with more songs and tons of downloadables. We will be getting it and probably getting rid of Rock Band). But, thus far, my favorite thing for the Wii is Wii Fit.

Wii Fits are very hard to find. We finally snagged ourselves one about a week ago after months of trying (it was supposed to be my birthday present). For those who don't know, Wii Fit is a game that contains many different exercises and it acts as your personal trainer. You use the Mii (your avatar) that you've already created, and you give it your date of birth, and height. The balance board portion of the game (a white thing you stand on while exercising) weighs you and calculates your BMI. That portion is frightening because it really tells you the truth about how fat you are. The other frightening part is that your Mii changes depending on your BMI. For example, Brian and I's Mii's are both sort of puffy and round because WE are both sort of puffy and round.

So, you begin working out with the Wii Fit. You can select your own personal trainer (a guy or a girl) and do exercises in 4 categories: Yoga, Balance Games, Aerobics, and Strength Training. Some of the exercises are a lot harder than others, which obviously depends on your current fitness level and things that you already do. For example, I have been doing yoga on a weekly basis for months now, so that portion is easier for me, but certain poses are still challenging. The aerobics portion is easier too, because I do kickboxing and jogging. But the balance games and strength training are evil, because I am not strong, nor do I have good balance. And it's cool, its almost like virtual reality. You can ski jump, hula hoop, hit soccer balls with your head, and all sorts of other stuff.

When you're done working out (or whenever you want really), you can do the Wii Body Test. What it does is measure your balance, stability, and center of gravity, which it claims are the real test of fitness. Which makes sense if you think about it. The Wii is always telling you to improve your posture, which is linked to balance, etc. After it's done testing you, it gives you your Wii Fit Age, which, if you are fit, should be below your real age. Mine has teetered above and below my real age, averaging about at my real age. So, I guess that's okay. But I really want it to tell me I'm 20 again!

Well, that's my take on the Wii Fit. I better go now and spend some time on it, because it calls you out if you don't work out every day!

Short Political Statements

I am extremely glad to be able to report that Kwame Kilpatrick is finally GONE! This news makes me sooooo happy. That man has been damaging the city, region, and state for a long time now (not just the months this current scandal has been going on). He needed to go years ago, but unfortunately, the people of the City re-elected him two years ago. That goes to show that some people don't know what's good for them.

In case you don't know the details, this morning Kwame plead guilty to two felony counts of obstruction of justice in regards to the perjury case against him. In return for pleading guilty, he's resigning as Mayor (effective September 18th), surrendering his law license, serving 4 months in jail (beginning October 28th), with 5 years of probation after that. During his probation, he cannot run for or hold public office. Also, he has to make A MILLION dollars of restitution by the end of that 5 year period. He also plead no-contest in the assault case against him, which is basically a plea of guilty without saying you're guilty. Funny, huh?

Further, Chief of Police Ella Bully-Cummings resigned today, as she was one of his cronies and knew she would be losing a job anyway. As of this writing, Chief Counsel Sharon McPhail (also a Kwame-crony) had also tendered her resignation. I expect in the coming weeks, many high level city officials will be out of a job, either voluntarily or involuntarily when the head of City Council, Ken Cockrel, Jr., takes over the job (as is the chain of command under the city charter). Cockrel has never cared for Kwame, which makes me automatically like him. Honestly, I do like what I've seen of Cockrel, and hope that for whatever time he is in charge, some good things can happen. (He's in charge until there's a special election, but since the regular election is only in November 2009, they might just let him do the job for a year to settle things down.)

The second thing I'd like to discuss is Sarah Palin. None of the things I've heard in the media since she was selected as McCain's running mate have swayed me in the least. So she's a big conservative and her daughter's pregnant? So? It happens in all sorts of families. At least she and her boyfriend seem to want to do the right thing. If Sarah was a pro-choice, an abortion may have been procured and it would have been hushed under the rug. Now, I'm not saying either option is right or wrong. Do I think 17 is too young to have a baby and get married? In 99% of cases, YES. But it's not for me to decide or judge. It's a family matter. Quit criticizing and picking on poor Bristol, she's got enough to worry about!

Also, Sarah cannot seem to catch a break on the whole mommy-work thing. Now, everyone is saying she couldn't do the job of VP effectively because "her family is falling apart," "she has a special needs child she should be paying more attention to," etc. Boy, it's funny, but if she had put her career on hold to be with her family, these crazy liberals (and I do say the crazy ones, because I myself am pretty liberal on social issues) would tell her she was wasting her life and could do more than JUST raise children. Listen, as a country, if we want equality for women, then we have to accept and support the life choices that ALL WOMEN make, not just the ones we agree with politically. I honestly don't know if I will ever find a job or career that is where I fit in. Does that mean my life is wasted and unproductive? According to these same people, yes (only they twist their argument when it comes to Sarah). The whole point of feminism SHOULD BE that women now have the choice whether to work, not work, have kids, not to have kids, or any combination thereof. However, that doesn't seem to be what most people who call themselves feminists believe anymore. Tragic.

Sarah Palin Rocks My World

So, I am so excited about John McCain's choice of running mate. Alaska governor Sarah Palin is awesome! I had heard her name floated around several months ago in the Veep-stakes, and looked her up, and was immediately impressed by what I read. I literally jumped for joy when I heard she was his choice and I think Brian is in love with another woman. Here is a rundown of all the cool things about her:

1) She has cleaned up corruption, both outside her party and inside it. She doesn't care who you are, if you are dirty, she will tear you up. She's extremely honest and scrupulous.
2) She is fiscally conservative, i.e., is not going to tax the hell out of my (but mostly Brian's) hard earned money to turn around and give entitlements and handouts to people who don't deserve it. Barack Obama's tax plan basically wants to penalize people like Brian and I (and many of our friends) who worked our butts off to get educated and make a good living. To hell with that!
3) She is not a lawyer, or other career-politician type. She has a bachelor's in journalism from the University of Idaho! (Way to go journalism majors--shout out to A!) She worked as a sportscaster for a while, was a commercial fisherman, and did other jobs as well, before being elected to city council, mayor, and governor. And to the Democrats, who are demeaning her experience being mayor of a small town--small towns are the backbone of this country. FUCK YOU. (Excuse my language.)
4) She was a high school basketball star in her hometown who was called "Sarah Barracuda" for having ovaries of steel and playing on a broken foot in the state championship game. She was also in the Miss Alaska pageant to earn scholarship money for college.
5) Her dad is a teacher and her mom was the school secretary--normal upbringing! She and her dad used to go hunt moose before school started. She's a lifetime NRA member (perhaps Brian's second favorite thing about her, behind the fiscal conservatism).
6) She is a mother of five, married to her high school sweetheart for 20 years. Her oldest child is in the Army, going to Iraq in a few weeks, and her youngest is a 4 month old baby with Down's Syndrome. Wow.

Okay, so I'm not saying I agree with everything about her. In my heart, I am a bit more liberal, but the modern Democratic party has lost my vote due to factor #2, listed above. Quit taking my money to pay for people who don't want to work! The things about her that I don't agree with are: 1) She is against gay marriage. On the whole, I would say, let gay people get married. I believe it would create stability in families. Also, allowing gay people to marry in no way diminishes my marriage, so what do I care? 2) Most importantly, she is EXTREMELY pro-life, whereas I am pro-choice. While that is an important issue to me, I cannot cast my vote based on that issue alone. Life is not that simple. And I do respect her immensely for choosing not to terminate her last pregnancy and having her baby with Down's Syndrome. Clearly, she is not hypocritical in her beliefs. She is what she seems.

Also, apparently, there is some potential scandal brewing. In Alaska, people are alleging that she fired an administrator in the State Police for refusing to fire her ex-brother in law, a trooper who was having a nasty custody dispute with her sister. She denies it and the investigation is on going. If that's the worst they can find on her, she's still the cleanest politician out there. Her approval rating in Alaska is over 80%. She must be doing many things right!

So, in short, my vote in November will go to McCain/Palin! Who's got a woman on the ticket now bitches! Also, I want to tell people that I've fixed the blog so anyone can comment, not just those with a blogger id, like my friend A. So, please leave comments, I'd love to read them! Just click on Comments at the bottom of the entry, and choose "Anonymous."

Nervous Nellie!

First, I'd like to thank my friend and frequent reader A, who has already commented to me that she likes the new layout of the blog! Thanks A! After she upgraded her blog, and seeing several other blogs I read change layout recently, I thought it was time for a change. I found this template, which I feel is actually Michigan-y and pretty. It reminds me of my wedding (coolest day ever) on Mackinac Island, with our wedding cake being shaped like a lighthouse. Hope everyone likes it.

Second, on to the real purpose of this post. I am nervous about a few work related things lately. The firm I am working for gave me a real project last week, a research and writing thing, the likes of which I basically haven't done in a year and a half. I've finished it a couple days early and am going to send it to the partner later this afternoon. I have a bad feeling it's not good, or it won't be what they wanted, or it's not up to snuff. I don't know what to do about that--the project itself was fairly straightforward and simple. I guess I'm worried I OVER simplified it and didn't do enough. I just want them to be satisfied with it as a first draft. Honestly, I'm sure it's fine, but I always have this nagging feeling that my work isn't good enough, and by extension, I'm not good enough. Both places I worked as a "real lawyer" (i.e. in the office, full time) I feel didn't give me enough feedback for me to really know if I suck or am halfway decent as a lawyer. So me, being the eternal pessimist, always feel like I'm not good enough. I feel like everything that's ever happened to me is because I suck at my job, and hence, that's why I've not been searching for a full time job all that hard over the past year and a half. I fee like I'm just going to get burned again. Ugh.

The other thing I'm worrying about is playing softball tomorrow! You might wonder, why is she playing softball tomorrow and why is she worried about it? Well, I'm playing softball at the annual firm picnic. I'm worried about going to this outing when I really don't know anybody because I don't work in the office. That's why I'm turning in the assignment late this afternoon--hopefully the partner who assigned it will not have had a chance to read it when I see him tomorrow. If they hate it, I'd much rather get bad news via email (hearing that you suck always comes easier in writing, as opposed to in person). Also, I'm just plain worried about embarrassing myself playing ball! I haven't played since I was a kid. I have very little athletic ability and cannot even keep coordinated in kickboxing class. I've been making my lovely husband, who plays every week on his team in the summer and into the fall, practice with me. We've been throwing and catching, hitting, and fielding. I've been okay, but I'll never be Jennie Finch, or even my friends A or K, who were both pretty darn good players in high school. I just hope I don't fall on my butt or blow a huge play that loses my team the game or something! Aaagh!

Say Hello to My Little Friend

So, about a week ago Brian said I needed a new toy. Keep in mind, I think I have the only husband on the planet who says I need to spend more money on myself. He has been wanting to get a new phone, as his Treo was completely crapping out--failing to sync properly, keys were dying, Windows Mobile was crashing, etc. He was sick of it, and I was sick of hearing him complain.

He decided he wanted an I-phone. For him, it makes sense, that's a business tool. I said, "For me, honey, that would be entirely useless. My flip phone is fine." Well, he disagreed. You see, he's been trying to get me a Wii-Fit since my birthday (2 months ago now!) and cannot get his hands on one. So, to make it up for me, he decided I needed a new phone. I am now the proud owner of a 16G 3G I-phone.

We got them on Friday of last week. For about 2 days, all I could do was play with it. And I must say, it's pretty freaking cool. But now, I've realized it's much more work than my old phone! I have to sync it up with my computer, manage my contacts, manage my music (I decided not to put my whole I-pod library on the thing, so what you do is import playlists). Also, we can't figure out how to sync up the photos I've taken with the phone onto my computer without copying them (i.e., I end up with 2 sets of identical photos on the phone). Brian is in his element with this stuff. For me, it's just frustrating, because it never works the way you want it to. I think technology should just be able to read my mind and do exactly what I want, when I want it. If it doesn't, then I'm not interested. Although, I must say, the I-phone is about as close to that as I've ever seen. And it is wicked fast. But maybe, just maybe, I don't really need to check my email tonight at Brian's softball game, or get on the internet to check the weather in Timbuktu. Maybe all this technology stuff is going a little to far. I can't get him off his damn computer to begin with. I think pretty soon, he's just going to want to get his cell phone implanted in his head or something so he's never without it, yet doesn't have to carry it around. Maybe we don't need to be plugged in 24-7. Maybe humans weren't meant to live that way. Maybe we all need to take a step back and lead a bit simpler lives.

Maybe we should just all be Amish. But, I hate Brian's beard (all married Amish men wear beards) and I'm sure I'd get sick of dark colored dresses, bonnets, and no shaving my legs pretty quickly. What a dilemma....

Two People I am Sick Of

Michael Phelps and Kwame Kilpatrick. I know, probably not the names you were expecting to read. And, granted, they are very different people, but I am sick of them for the same reason....they are EVERYWHERE.

Kwame-gate has been going on awhile now. The whole things makes me both laugh at the stupidity of the people of Detroit for re-electing him, and cringe, because he had such promise and he's thrown it all away. He's let his political power go to his head; he thinks he's untouchable. I don't give a crap about his affair with Christine Beatty--what some REALLY STUPID people fail to realize is that the perjury case is not about sex for Christ's sake. It's about LYING UNDER OATH. Rule one of our legal system--when you are sworn in to testify--you don't lie. Apparently only Kwame, Bill Clinton, and a few other people in the world don't realize this. Also, who the hell does he think he is, assaulting two sheriff's deputies, one with physical deeds, the other with horrible racial slurs? As I said, he thinks he's untouchable, that's who he thinks he is. Well, he is not, and he needs to go NOW.

As for Michael Phelps, I am probably in the minority of people who have this feeling that I'm TOTALLY and UTTERLY sick of him. He is not the only freaking person competing for our country at the Olympics! The media, especially the media around here, sure treats him like he is. The local media is always saying, "Michigan's own Michael Phelps," but honestly, he's not a Michigander! He swims here, yeah, but he was born and lived in Maryland his whole life, except the last four years. And, as soon as these games are over, he has stated he's going back to Maryland. I understand and agree that he is a tremendous athlete (even in my mind, perhaps the best ever, not just for his sport), but he is not God. Quit kissing his ass so much! I bet he's got a huge ego from everyone sucking up to him ever since he started swimming because he's so good. Quit giving him so much attention! Tell me about some of the other athletes in other events!

So sayeth my rant and rave.

Life Happenings..

Lots of little things going on lately, thought I'd do an another life update!

1) Reproductive stuff--all of my test results have now come back. They found absolutely nothing, which is both good news and (to me) bad news. At least if they find something, it can be treated and you can have some reassurance that this won't happen again. Brian was even tested for a few things, and everything came back fine. So, all they can really do for me is to give me progesterone supplements (the effectiveness of which is medically controversial) and baby aspirin, of all things. Also, I have to get this stuff through a special compound pharmacy that does not take insurance, which is pretty inconvenient. Hopefully, it works.

2) Work stuff--I've been off work again for the last two weeks since deps went into summer vacation. They should start up again next week. Also, the firm I'm doing the work for says they're happy with me, and want me to start doing more work for them, both asbestos and non-asbestos related. They even are putting my picture and bio up on their website! This other work is stuff, that with training, I should be able to do from home a lot, so that is great! It hasn't started yet, so we'll see how it works out.

3) Movies--since seeing the X-Files movie, Brian and I have seen "Step-Brothers" and "Pineapple Express." Both were raunchy R-rated comedies that, at least in my mind, somewhat failed to live up to the hype. They were both decent, and Brian actually liked "Pineapple Express" pretty well (I think it's because he could relate to ALL the pot jokes). But for me, I would have been happy to wait until they were rentals!

4) Baby Showers--I went to C's last weekend, and it was very nice. I helped write down the gifts, and she thanked me later for my "thoroughness." I probably wrote too much! My friend and frequent reader A's is coming up next weekend. It is "Cat in the Hat" themed, which my mother thinks is very cool and is excited to attend with me. I wrapped part of her gift tonight, but I need more paper!

5) Brian's annual camping excursion--he is finally gone camping with the boys for the year. I have to admit, I'm glad it's here so it can be over. For a good two weeks before, its all I hear about, and then we have to go get all the food because Brian has cooked it all for the last few years (except last year, and there were complaints all around). So, finally life can get back to normal.

Great! There's the update! I'm off to watch the finale of "So You Think You Can Dance," which my friend K-Lo got me hooked on last year!