Time to get to work

I finally have all 36 goals in my hand. It's pretty amazing honestly. And the way that I got my last 12 were quite pleasing as well. As I walked into my office the other day, I was handed this:

I felt very spy-like

At this point I figure this is either an elaborate assassination attempt or.... Actually I assumed assassination attempt all the way. I haven't made too many enemies over the years, but the ones I have are ruthless.

Side note: I really like Danny DeVito

Slowly I opened my package, expecting the worst. But to my pleasant surprise I had been sent 12 brand new goals. 12 new goals that would challenge me mentally and physically, taking me to new levels of awesomeocity and IndianJonesitude. And even better, they came on their own individual notecards. AND WITH A BOOK!!! 

I probably should take better pictures, but I don't.

As a reminder, here's the other 24 so far:

1. Walk at least 4 miles every single week until Spring Break
2. After learning to swim, learn one type of swim stroke and perfect it (for example: the breast stroke… he he he )
3. Tell yourself something truly positive about you every single day
4. Take someone to your favorite spot
5. Have lunch or dinner by yourself without any internet distractions
6. Watch season 1 of Veronica Mars
7. Plan a super date
8. Get more batman gear
9. Go down a slide or swing whenever possible
10. Dedicate 5 blog posts to someone or something
11. Live tweet 5 of the Bond films
12. Try a new and exotic type of cuisine
13. Blog once a week for three months.
14. Learn to swim
15. Create a geo-scavenger hunt.
16. Create an original superhero.
17. Write a short story about said hero.
18. Create an original recipe that must include bacon.
19. Run a 5k.
20. Watch every Bond film (All 23).
21. Learn a hobby of my choosing.
22. Eat somewhere from "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives"
23. Go on a road trip.
24. Ride a Batman themed ride.

And here are my new 12:

1. Read Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
2. Pick 3 people to intentionally pursue relationships with this year
3. Dress up for class twice a month throughout the semester
4. Write "The Ladies Guide to _______" My choice what.
5. Learn to cook eggs five ways: scrambled, fried, hardboiled, poached, and softboiled
6. Take someone stargazing
7. Watch 5 Hitchcock films, and choose a favorite
8. Give ten strangers a compliment
9. Design a tattoo that may or may not ever get
10. Treat a girl to bacon fondue
11. Mean an article of clothing 
12. Write "The Comprehensive Guide to Dinosaur Fighting"

So that's it. My full plate for the year. I've already knocked off a few, but I still have so much to do. So I'm gonna go get started with a nap and a late night snack.

Later days

Filler

This is really just a filler post until I can edit something together that is much nicer. I would've posted earlier but I was in Memphis this weekend and didn't even touch my computer. Lots of things have occurred in my life, and I'll talk about them tomorrow.

Sorry I'm the worst

I can cook, I swear

Well, maybe cook is a strong word. I have the ability to combine food ingredients and apply heat in a way that is reminiscent of a mad scientist. My creations tend to leave a lot to be desired in the looks department, even if they taste delicious and have a beautiful soul on the inside. 

He actually volunteers on the weekends.

So last week I decided it was time to definitely knock one of my goals for the year out, and I figured that the first one that I had to conquer was to create an original recipe/dish that included bacon. I struggled with this one though because everything that can be done with bacon seems to have been done. Then it hit me: What am I really good at making??? Grilled cheese, spaghetti, mac and cheese, and of course bacon. So me being the genius that I am decided to combine these beautiful foods into a incredible superfood. And since my good friend Niah is the one who decided to give me this goal, she had to suffer through this experiment into madness. So now I present: The Pasta Bacon Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Now I'm really bad at taking pictures, and Niah got distracted with some game on my phone so there's a severe lack of photo documentation in this post, but you'll get what I have. 

My first step is to have a plan if everything goes wrong. In this case I believe junk food is the best option.

I've got most of the elf food groups covered.

 The next actual step is to make bacon. I vary on how I like to do this, but usually I just use my oven. I feel it gives me the crisp I desire while still retaining enough moisture not to be crunchy. Though I usually do make a couple of pieces so on the stovetop so I can hear the sound of the bacon frying.

 Now these next pictures must come with a warning: I am making bacon... Ladies.

I'm not a model, I just play one on T.V.

Next I had to make the pastas. Instead of making two pots of different pastas, I decided to make a mac and cheese cup and a small pot of spaghetti so I didn't have too much food. Though you really can't have too much pasta.

Yeah, I'm pretty much ready to be an Iron Chef.

                       Well maybe not...

It was finally time to actually put this monstrosity together. I started by just putting down my bread, then placed my cheese and finally my pasta. This was the same process I used for both sandwiches, one that I've considered patenting.

 

Of course I then messed up and burnt my first one. Lucky for me I tend to enjoy slightly burnt food

I really prefer the term well done.

 And that was it. It was time for this to either be an incredible success or a colossal failure. Personally my nerves were getting to me

Sorry I'm not better looking.

And then..... SUCCESS!!!! My first bite was delicious. The cheesiness mixed with the heavenlike bacon and the pasta-y goodness made this tempest of flavor and consistencies. It was probably the greatest dish that was made that date in the entire world. Or something. It was pretty good though, seriously.

And what did my fearless compatriot Niah think about my creation? I like to think it turned out it was Tim-tested, Niah-approved.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with how everything turned out. I knocked a goal off my list, had a great time, and probably cut a few months off my life. It's nice to actually see things through for a change. Well, that's it for now. Sadly my next post probably won't be so delicious.

And for those of you who stuck around til the end, here's a plate of bacon:

'Merica 

 

A new challenger appears

I finally found a third person to make a deal with, so now I'm up to 36 goals for the year. I'm still waiting to get them back, but I really can't wait.

Here's a quick update on how my goals are going so far:

I'm struggling to make a superhero... well maybe struggling isn't the right word, since I've made a lot. The problem is choosing which one to go forward with since I kind of love them all. I may just end up with a huge universe by the end of the year. That actually sounds pretty cool: Marvel, DC, Tim, Dark Horse.

There are still so many Bond movies to watch. I'm really not sure where to start, but I'm working on it. Slowly. Very slowly.

This whole running thing is for the birds, like emus. But I went for a run the other day and didn't die. So that's exciting.

And most importantly I'm making the most incredible dish ever tonight. With bacon. Next week's update is gonna be epic.

That's it for now. Later days

GOOOOOAALLLLLs Part 2

This is just a quick update about my goals post. I now have another 12 to post about, though some of these work well together.

Here's my first 12 from the last post:

1. 1. Blog once a week for three months.
2. Learn to swim
3. Create a geo-scavenger hunt.
4. Create an original superhero.
5. Write a short story about said hero.
6. Create an original recipe that must include bacon.
7. Run a 5k.
8. Watch every Bond film (All 23).
9. Learn a hobby of my choosing.
10. Eat somewhere from "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives"
11. Go on a road trip.
12. Ride a Batman themed ride

And here's my 12 new goals to go along with them:


1. Walk at least 4 miles every single week until Spring Break
2. After learning to swim, learn one type of swim stroke and perfect it (for example:
the breast stroke… he he he )
3. Tell yourself something truly positive about you every single day
4. Take someone to your favorite spot
5. Have lunch or dinner by yourself without any internet distractions
6. Watch season 1 of Veronica Mars
7. Plan a super date
8. Get more batman gear
9. Go down a slide or swing whenever possible
10. Dedicate 5 blog posts to someone or something
11. Live tweet 5 of the Bond films
12. Try a new and exotic type of cuisine


So that's it, at least for now. I may exchange goals with one more person, I'm not sure yet. Though if you come to me with a great list I'll probably agree. Now I'm off to work, but I leave you with this:

Later Days

GOOOOOAALLLLLs

First, I was way too happy when I thought of the name of this post. Stupid happy. I'm still smiling about it. 

Ladies...

Now that I've got your attention, it's time for big news. Usually I make New Years resolutions, and that's all well and good but I get super bored about five or six days in. I think my record is four weeks. So what should I do? I think I've come up with an awesome solution this year.

I still have my own personal goals that we all make (be a better person, wrestle an alligator, eat said alligator, etc..) but this year I have made deals with a couple of individuals to exchange goals. We've exchange 12 goals each, three major and nine minor to be completed by the end of the year. This way, I'm not accountable to just myself but to my friends, who will in fact mock me relentlessly if I fail.... Or maybe encourage me or something. 

I'll be keeping everyone up to date on how I'm doing, as well as posting weekly now due to one of my given goals. I've got 12 so far, I should have another 12 in the coming week, and I may deal with one more person. So by years end I'll have completed 24-36 goals. Here's the 12 I have so far:

1. 1. Blog once a week for three months.
2. Learn to swim
3. Create a geo-scavenger hunt.
4. Create an original superhero.
5. Write a short story about said hero.
6. Create an original recipe that must include bacon.
7. Run a 5k.
8. Watch every Bond film (All 23).
9. Learn a hobby of my choosing.
10. Eat somewhere from "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives"
11. Go on a road trip.
12. Ride a Batman themed ride.

I'll post the next 12 when I get them, but so far I've got a pretty full plate. Any help or suggestions will be appreciated, and let's hope I don't fail miserably

How I Lost a Small Child and a Car Tire

Before you overreact, it wasn't a very attractive child or a very nice car tire...

At the beginning of the summer I had a revelation... I had let myself go.... Straight to the buffet line!!!

All jokes aside, I had let myself get to the point where I was overweight. It began to affect my self esteem, my relationships, and even my health. I realized this when I decided to go for a run one night and barely made it past the corner before I began huffing and puffing. I went home and looked at myself in the mirror and was amazed at what I saw. I had gotten fat.

Except it wasn't magic. Not at all.

I tried lying to myself. I used fun words to describe myself: plump, robust, voluptuous, dense... I think I even said linebackeresqe once or twice. But in the end I couldn't lie to myself anymore and I had a choice to make. I could either continue with the lifestyle I was living, I could decide to make big changes, or I could take a nap... Well I did take a nap, but then I woke up a few hours later and decided to make the big changes. Then I went and got a Big Mac, because I wasn't going to start that night.

So there I was, trying to figure out how I got to this point in my life. I looked at my credit card receipts, and I realized I was eating fast food more than any other meal. It was quick and easy, and I actually realized that I may have had a slight addiction. I also realized that I was eating really late at night and into the morning. All in all I felt pretty gross looking at what I had eaten.

I had also become pretty lethargic. I very rarely ran or even thought about working out. Elevators were pivotal and close parking spaces were essentially gifts from heaven. Hills? Essentially the Bane to my Batman. What I'm trying to say is that I dreaded the idea of physical exertion, and that needed to change. I needed to change.

My first step was to download the Lose It app and begin to register everything that I ate. I slowly weaned myself off of fast food, which was ridiculously hard, and forced myself to not eat late at night. (Except for tonight, but I was starving so get off me!) I got some dumbbells and began working out, and I purposely started parking far away and taking the stairs. I know what you're saying, "Duh Tim, this is all stuff everyone knows to do. Good job being a revolutionary." and you're right. I didn't do anything amazingly unique to start out with, mainly because I really had no idea what to do, or what would work for me.

I began losing weight, but I kinda hit a wall hard. I lost focus of my goal due to trying to graduate and get into grad school, as well as other things that popped up. I began stress eating again, and even though I didn't gain back everything I had lost, I gained back enough to render my earlier efforts moot. What was I going to do?

Spoiler: I took another nap

Well once I got back on track I knew that I couldn't just do the same thing everyone else does or I'd get bored and stop. I started looking at different ways to lose weight and ways to boost my metabolism, without the aid of medicine. I began drinking a lot of ice water, I replaced a meal a day with a smoothie, and some other random things here and there. Mainly I just kept myself accountable and I did something they tell you not to do. I got a digital scale that tells me down to the 10th of a pound what I weigh. I like knowing that my actions have rewards and consequences, so I weigh myself every day at the same time. It really keeps me on track, and it's done well for me so far.

Why am I writing about this? Why does any of this matter? Well when I first started writing this blog I was afraid that it would become an exercise in vanity, so I tried not writing too much about myself directly. This though, this is different... This one's for me. I've lost approximately 47 pounds so far, and I can't believe it. I never thought I would get to this point. I honestly though 20 pounds was a pipe dream, and when that became reality I just kept going and going. I guess this leads me to my overall point, that if I can do this what else can I do? Maybe I can actually learn to juggle. The possibility exists for me to learn to swim, or to at least not drown in the deep end. Heck, maybe I can even update this blog on a regular basis...

Ok, maybe some things are a bit of a reach.

Thanks to everyone who has supported me, who kept me going when the going got tough. And thanks to everyone who said I should just stop and be happy where I was, that I should just give up. You all gave me the drive to be better, and you still keep my fires burning even now.

So now that I've gotten all this off my chest (and waistline) I really have some things that I want to write about that I feel I need to work on. Luckily I have Thanksgiving break this week so I should have something up in the next week or so. Keep an eye out for that, and if you have a new challenge for me to attempt leave a comment. I leave you with my favorite thing someone said to me this week:

"Tim, if you make one more Power Rangers reference I will invent time-travel, dress as the Red Ranger, go back to when you first started watching, break into your house, and punch little kid you in the face!"