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Here is the shirt that I wore to Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. "Davy Jones owes me Five Bucks!" Eliza, being the ultimate Jack Sparrow fan (read: Johnny Depp infatuation), wore her own custom tshirt to the premier. "Mrs. Jack Sparrow" I believe in retrospect, Eliza would have rather written "Mrs. Captain Jack […]

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This week was an unusual one. Even with recent flooding, we were knocked off our normal exercise routine due to many people going away for the holiday, parks being closed for festivities, and me injuring my hamstring. My results for this week are not solely based on the amount of exercise for this week, though. […]

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Every Spring our area experiences water run-off from the Winter snow, which usually causes flooding in low laying areas. Being at nearly the top of what is a fairly high mountain range, we do not see any real damaging effects of this run-off – but we surely see the water rushing by. And "the valley" […]

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You may notice that my web site has some new digs. Something that is probably obvious to you, is that I am not completely done with the home page, but the improvements that the theme brings to the table are too valuable not to launch it just a bit early. One of the biggest complaints […]

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The governor of Pennsylvania stated that: "We dodged a bullet.". And I definitely agree. Levees were tested to their max, rescue workers were tasked, and several people were tested to see if they’d heed the direction of local government to save their own lives. If you have no idea what I am talking about, you […]

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I’ve gotten a few comments on my efforts so far, both on the Internet and in person. These are very heartwarming and I thank everyone for sharing those sentiments with me. However, I figured maybe we could try to compliment each other in this thread, and perhaps tell those that have effected us most, how […]

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For those of you not living anywhere near the Northeast, or that do not catch the headlines, we’re at the tail end of a five day flood. Normally, we get hit with flooding a few times a year. Nothing severe usually, since much of the area I live in is thousands of feet above sea […]

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After my minor set back, when I gained three pounds in a week, I decided to take this diet much more seriously. I started to focus more on small victories rather than dramatic results. And boy has it paid off. My goal is to lose three pounds each week. My focus should be on two […]

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As we edge ever closer to the number of 100 dieters on the list, I have a request to each and every person on the diet. Please weigh in tomorrow. Tomorrow marks the end of our first full month, or four weeks, on the diet. Several of those that have asked to be part of […]

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Some people live life month to month, week to week, or day to day. However, sometimes I try to live almost second by second. This isn’t something I’ve always strived to do, but rather something I’m slowly working myself towards. I make repetitive errors just like everyone else, and I’m trying to stop the process. […]

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My wife has had a blog in the past. For reasons I still don’t understand, she thinks that she has "nothing to add to the conversation" or that no one cares. So she ended up ditching her last blog. For me, blogging isn’t about other people caring since I could care less about what people […]

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A few weeks ago, some friends of ours asked us to attend a dinner and show at Woodloch Pines in Hawley, Pa. Eliza and I on the bus So Eliza and I decided to check it out, and see what all the hubbub was about. Dinner was very good, they kept bringing plate of food […]

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This week has been a great week. As you know from last week’s weigh in, I didn’t do so great last week. This week I think I did really well, though the numbers do not necessarily reflect that – yet. As a brief catch-up; my starting weight was 225.6, my goal is to lose around […]

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Eliza and I had a really nice weekend. The weather, although a bit hot for my taste, couldn’t have been much better. On Saturday we drove up to Owego, New York with my mother-in-law and Eliza’s two aunts for Strawberry Festival. We had a great time, got to see some cool stuff, and eat some […]

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Wow, I have been chomping at the bit to tell all of you what has been going on, and now I finally can. When the-diet started it received an overwhelming amount of response. Family, friends, and then strangers started to join in to get fit. There was no plan for this diet, no one had […]

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Just when I thought my head was unable to grow larger, since being quoted in a nationally syndicated magazine, one of my Macbook photos was published in a small publication called Geekanoids. Inner page of Geekanoids preview issue The preview issue can also be downloaded as a PDF. I’m actually thinking of picking up a […]

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This week started off great. With the success of my diet last week, I was motivated to continue right through today – and was hoping to post some great results. But, you have to take the good with the bad, and be honest. So, this weekend we had a little set back. Eliza, Chris and […]

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As excited as I am to read everyone’s first week results, I was even more anxious to figure out my own. This week has gone very well and while there were some definite hurdles placed in front of me, I feel that overall I did a very good job and have come out even more […]

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I’d like to let everyone know, that I will be in as much pain, if not more pain, than all of you this weekend. Weekends are definitely the hardest time to stay on a diet – with get-togethers, cookouts, restaraunts, movies, etc. Please stay strong through this weekend whether it is your first or not. […]

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Well, so far so good for me. I was hoping that asking other people to join me would actually motivate me, and I think it definitely has. I was hoping that posting my ugliness on the Web would also be a motivation, and that has been too. The overwhelming response to the diet has been […]

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On the heels of last night’s lightning storm, we had a moth on our deck this morning. Moth on the porch click the moth for more photos He still hasn’t flown away. I am thinking maybe he’d be good for the diet. How many calories in a moth anyway? Update: Turns out this is a […]

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Current weight: 225.6 pounds I’ve been floating between 220 and 227 for what seems like forever. When I did my diets in the past I quickly lose weight, then give up – and spring right back into this range. I suppose I should just be happy that I don’t just keep getting heavier. May 30th, […]

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Lightning illuminates everything, click above for more photos Wow. We were just treated to an extraordinary display of nature. Thunderstorms, while not uncommon in our neck of the woods, typically pass very quickly. Tonight we had a thunderstorm that went on for a few hours, and is still fading slowly as I write this. Eliza […]

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I used to write a diet log, that is – when I was actually on a diet. Mike, Chris and I will be "competing" in a diet contest. Since it is very hard to compete for pounds, or percentage of body fat, etc – we’ve decided that we’re just going to try to help each […]

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If you haven’t submitted your site yet, don’t forget. And, if you have, try to spread the word on your blog or to your friends via IM or any other means at your disposal. We’re really looking to diversify, and we need you help to do so. Five hours left, so get to it.

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For the last few years we have been dealing with ‘life with two cats in an apartment’. There are many drawbacks, and benefits, to having cats (as I’m sure many of you cat lovers out there know). We had been wanting to get new couches for quite awhile, and have been unable since we feared […]

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This past Friday Eliza and I drove to Paramus, New Jersey (about a two and half hour drive) to visit with my sister, brother-in-law, and niece and also to buy some stuff at Ikea. Our hopes were to purchase a new desk and lamp for my office, as well as a few bookcases for our […]

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My brother’s house has not been sold yet, but his website for it has definitely worked out already. We’re tracking the visitors using Performancing‘s service, and we’ve been able to determine a few things about the Web site. First of all, it serves as a very good filter for all interested parties. Peter put an […]

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My brother is selling his home in sunny Florida. He called me and asked if I’d put together a quick web site to facilitate that, and give those interested a quick way to view some photos and general information about the home. So, we setup 6410aberdeen.com as a way to do that. It’s simple, to […]

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Chris Rhee, a member of the 9rules Network and friend, has had $5,000 or so worth of equipment stolen from right beneath his nose. We’re try to help out, and I’m asking that anyone else that can help out should too. Link to him from your blog too, if you get the chance. Side note: […]

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Also known as; The Breakfast of Champions. Last night Eliza and I stopped at Dunkin Donuts on the way home and I decided to buy one donut for each day for the rest of the week. This way, when I woke up each morning I could enjoy coffee and a donut. My coffee and donut […]

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If you are with me, pass this along to two friends that aren’t usually included in memes either. I’m passing this to Mike Stickel, Chris Fehnel, and Devin Reams.

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Eliza and I love to cook at home. As Eliza says "The clean up is the worst part.". Apart from that, there is nothing I do not enjoy about cooking, and eating, at home. It is cheaper, generally better for you, and is all around more fulfilling. Not too long ago Eliza picked up Rachel […]

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My brother taking a digital photo Film vs. Digital. There are very obvious pros and cons to both. On the one hand, the quality of photos taken on good film is vastly superior to those taken by your digital camera. Yet, the immediacy of digital photos, the ease of being able to get them into […]

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Dunstan Diaz, a 9rules Network Member, has decided to spearhead an effort to raise even more Web Standards awareness by creating a Naked for CSS Day. To participate, all you need to do is rip out your style sheet for one day, leaving nothing but your naked site to show in all of its semantic […]

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JJ Abrams, creator of Alias and most-recently LOST, has stolen a considerable portion of my life away. I was never a fan of Alias, though I know many people out there are and I did catch an episode or two that I found enjoyable. However, LOST has me wrapped up so tightly that I often […]

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I’ve been asking myself that all day, then I dug up this video of me from a few weeks back. And then I realize, yes I’m as white as white can be. Compare my video to Paul Scrivens’ video, and you’ll understand. [tags]9rules, dancing, video, fun[/tags]

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I try my very best to avoid headaches, but once and awhile they creep in on me. Since I do try to avoid headaches, when I get them they are usually pretty debilitating. Most of the time, me having a headache forces me to suspend any activities until it is gone. One of the most […]

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We’re up and running. There is a lot of work to be done here for sure, but that can all be done whilst you’re enjoying what is already here. From now on you can expect small incremental updates to happen, but none that should inhibit you from getting at what you crave the most; my […]

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Chris had a few friends over tonight, myself included, for some poker and darts. The first game of poker went "okay" since I came in second, losing to Ryan (Chris’ brother) after a few hands heads-up. I think I misplayed about 4 or 5 fairly large hands during that game which led to my demise. […]

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I can’t wait for Spring. As the weather breaks, I’m going to try to take advantage of it. Yesterday I enjoyed some time on the deck/porch, even though I could only stay out there for a little while, it was worth it. Today we’re supposed to get up to 18 degrees, or 64 for you […]

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Each time I shower (about once every two or three months), I forget to dry off my left shoulder until last. Its something I’m perfectly conscience of, yet it seems to happen every single time. My toothbrush is in the “medicine cabinet”, which is behind the mirror above the sink, and every time I go […]

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I can not tell you how many times I’ve been asked this question. Sarcastically of course. But, I’d like to answer it seriously. No. Not even close. In fact, I generally take the approach that someone might be immensely smarter than I am. That isn’t to say that I freely give of my respect of […]

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Blake says hello I was unable to attend CocoaDevHouse in Dallas in “body”, but I was able to get their via IRC and Skype. Wanted to thank all those in attendance for keeping me entertained for awhile, and answering some good questions on some cool topics. Side note: I’ve had a chance to sit down […]

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Upon reading the title of this post, you’re probably escorting your children out of the room before continuing to read it. But I can assure you, the title is intentionally deceiving. For years I’ve been tied to some type of desk. Obviously having a laptop helps me “unplug” every now and then. But, being in […]

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