One is the worst number that you ever heard..

The other night Jonathan went on a date. Based on the timing (from when he got home from work), he chose "Year One" as the movie they went to see.

When he came home, he was very upset. He said the movie was terrible and made fun of a lot of good men mentioned in the Bible (Abel, Abraham and Issac) while extolling Cain and the inhabitants of Sodom. I just didn't see that coming at all in the previews. He apologized profusely to his date..

We talked for while and I let him know that it's perfectly acceptable to walk out of movie he finds objectionable. I also told him about a web site that I use and have recommended to others called screenit.com. This site gives very detailed information broken out by various categories. You can very easily see whether a movie is one a Christian would be able to attend or not.

It has reached the point where Donna and I rarely even go to the movies. There are just not any that we feel right going to. It's
sad but true.

Wii Fit

Right before Memorial Day, Josh came to us wanting to buy a "Wii Fit". He had the money and Donna and I agreed it was OK.

I didn't think much of it for a couple of days until Josh asked me to come and try it out. The Wii Fit consists of the game CD and a balance board. First, you have to pick a Mii (this is an animated character that kinda looks like you). Then, you are weighed and the system measures how balanced and stable during that. I was surprised how non-balanced/stable I was. You are then presented with a couple of balance challenges (they vary each time you weigh in). The system then melds all that data together and gives you your Wii Fit age. Mine was absolutely awful to start with - 63!!.

You can then have four categories to choose from - Yoga, Aerobics, Srength Training, Balance Games. I started with the Yoga. I found that I was not flexible at all. You are given scores based on how well you keep your balance during the various Yoga poses. Strength training consists of basic exercises such as Twists, Push-ups/Planks, etc. You are scored on balance on some and how stable you are doing the others (the balance board measures the amount of pressure you put on it). The Aerobics has exercises like Hula Hooping, Stepping and even some runs (I do that on my own). The Balance part is more like games, but it's fun to do and would be really fun to do with younger kids.

I was skeptical of this thing at first. It actually seems to do a job of making sure you do the various exercises correctly. It certainly makes you accountable on your weight (giving you your BMI as well). You can look at charts to see your progression (or lack thereof) on your BMI/weight. If your weight goes up, it asks you to choose a reason why (snacking, late eating, over-eating, I tended to choose "I don't know").

You can set a goal for weight loss. I had a goal to get under 180 by Monday. Well, I amazingly (it's words not mine) hit my goal today. I haven't weighed that little in many years. It promptly made me set another goal so I am trying to lose 3 more pounds in a month (to get my BMI under 23).

Did it make that much of a difference? I have gotten more flexible and my balance is a bit better (but still pitiful when I do the yoga Tree Pose.). My Wii Fit age is down in the 30's (it was actually 30 today). Knowing I was going to have to weigh in and it would be recorded forced me to be more careful on my eating. For example, we went to Back Yard Burgers one night. I normally get the large double-meat burger combo, but I went with the single burger combo instead. I eat one plate of food at dinner and don't eat after that until breakfast the next day. If I could resist those new Sonic Molten Chocolate Bundt cakes, I'd be even better off (I'm glad they are available "only for a limited time").

Would I recommend Wii Fit? It costs 89.00 or so (assuming you have a Nintendo Wii). It's a lot easier doing this at home and I certainly feel more comfortable not having an audience like I would at a health club. Plus, there aren't immodestly dressed people in the game like could possibly be at a health club. You acutally see your Mii get thinner as you lose weight. The daily weighing does give you accountability. It's not quite Yoga like you'd get in a true Yoga class, but I think it's great for a beginner like me. If you are just beginning, I would recommend you at least take a look.

Like Father, Like Son

I had another one of those moments in my life when I realized I am growing older.

Jonathan interviewed this spring for a summer intern job in Engineering where I work at USEC. He really didn't think he'd get the job since he's only been in college for one year. He ended up being chosen though. I was very proud of him. He did it all on his own, I didn't try to talk to anybody there about it.

His first day was last Monday. I saw him in the hall and he said he was heading out with another engineer to a project site. It's very strange to see your son working at the same place you do.

He's heard (and me too) all week that "you look just like your dad" and "you can tell whose son he is". I am sure he has this nightmare.

Doughnut Day 2009

I was reminded by a collegue that today is Doughnut Day 2009. Krispy Kreme will give you a free doughnut of your choosing today.

I love Krispy Kreme. I've been well-known to careen across multi-lanes of traffic when the "Hot Light" is on. There is one in Fenton Missouri on I-44 on the way to Six Flags that I've careened off the exit at 70mph when the light is on.

Alas, there is no Krispy Kreme in Paducah. My understanding is the guy who came up with them is from Paducah, but never opened a store here. The closest one to me is in Evansville (a 1.5 hour drive). Don't think I wasn't tempted :-).

Graduation

Tuesday night was Josh's high school graduation. The place was packed. There were twenty more graduates than at Jonathan's last year and it showed. Fortunately, we got there early and got decent seats plus managed to hold spots for both of our families.

Josh was one of two valedictorians. Both of our sons were valedictorians and as you might guess, I am pretty proud of them. They took hard classes (Calculus, Physics, etc) so they certainly earned it. Josh did his speech on "Attitude Determines Altitude". He did a great job on it. Transcripts are available for a nominal fee :-). Afterwards, Josh went with some of his buddies to eat and then come back for Project Graduation. This is (as you probably know) where they lock the kids in until the next morning to ensure a "chemical free" night. From what Josh told me and pictures I've seen, it looks like a lot of fun for them. Its better then most graduation nights I was familiar with in the past in this area which turned out to be huge drunken bashes.

It was an emotional day. Donna called me that morning and I could tell she was really upset. She finally told me that she was upset because Josh was leaving for school for the last time. She could remember when she sent him to pre-school for the first time and now he was done with school. I do not know how we'll ever get home from Lexington in August after we drop him off. I imagine sedation of some type will be in order. I am reminded of a lesson Jim Faughn preached where he referenced Psalms 127:4-5. These verses compare children to arrows in a quiver. He also talked about the coming when those arrows come out of the quiver and are shot into the distance. We're nocking our bow with one right now and it'll be let loose in a few months...

Literature

I enjoy reading a lot. My favorites are the Bible and various classic literature by writers such as Mark Twain, Jules Verne, and Robert Louis Stevenson. I have given up on reading most modern literature. For example, I tried to read Stephen King's "Bag of Bones" years ago and found it so vulgar that I gave up. The only "recent" fiction I've read is the Harry Potter series. I still read a lot of non-fiction (Finance, Bible study aides) books plus books of facts like almanacs.

A favorite classic of mine is the "The Scarlet Pimpernel" by Baroness Emmuska Orczy. I was reminded of this recently when I saw the Facebook page of a young man (Derek Ratliff) I go to church with . The story is about a man who appears to be a brainless rich aristocrat who turns out to be a dashing brave famous hero (The Scarlet Pimpernel) who saves French aristocrats from the clutches of the French "Reign of Terror". Does the general premise of that sound familiar (rich man who is actually a hero that nobody could believe would be him)? I've always felt that this book was the forerunner of the disguised superhero genre that is popular to this day (Bruce Wayne/Batman, Tony Stark/Ironman, etc). It's not an immensely long book (about like Treasure Island). It has some history in it concerning the French Revolution. I'd recommend you give it a read.

What I've just found out is the Baroness wrote other prequels and sequels to this book. I am already scouting out a few to buy to find out the further adventures of "The Scarlet Pimpernel"

Oooh, Donuts...

I have loved Red's Donuts for as long as I can remember. Their original shop was on Bridge Street. I can remember in my youth getting a Large Dr Pepper, four soft shell tacos from Taco John's and then getting 6 of their fabulous chocolate iced-cream filled donuts to top it off (this would be after a couple of rounds of Putt-Putt golf). That was back in the day when I could eat and eat and never gain an ounce... I have learned not to buy donuts anywhere in Paducah since I am always disappointed when I do.

They moved to a location on Jackson Street some years ago. It's right on the way to where we worship (Central church of Christ) and we have to constantly resist the temptation to stop in and grab some. This morning, Donna wanted to buy some donut holes for the Ladies Tea at Central. If you don't know what donut holes are (I actually met a guy from New York City a few years who didn't), they are the little pieces of donut that are cut out from the center of a regular donut and fried and covered in glaze. They are excellent especially when they are fresh like they were this morning (second only to the chocolate iced - creme filled I mentioned before). I had to make myself stop from eating all of them along with the chocolate iced - creme filled I bought so there would be some left for my sons.

Anyway, they now put advertising on their boxes. Donna and I always find it funny that this advertisement is on there.