Hi everyone, it's been a while since my last update. I've just had a lot of things going on and they sort of took center stage for a while. I have been updating my You Tube page nearly daily and I'll include some videos at the end of this post. I hope to be back to updating my blog more often.
So, I've finished with my grandmother's living room remodel and audio video system installation. It looks great and sounds awesome! The Bowers & Wilkins speakers are amazing! You'd never guess they were little 8" ceiling speakers CCM664 in the rear (two) and CCM663 in front (three), and a 10" B & W 200 watt sub. Also a Denon 2312 AV receiver, Sony 580 Blue-Ray DVD player, and a Direct TV DVR whole house system. It all works together seamlessly. We were going to use Time Warner Cable whole house DVR service and had an appointment set up to get it all installed but they lied about the appointment, canceled it and really messed things up. The next day was when all of the AV equipment was to be installed. So I called Direct TV, they said they would have an installer out first thing in the morning. He wasn't there in time for the AV installers but they knew the codes for the box they use, so it all worked out. I was absolutely livid about the Time Warner thing. As soon as I move, I'm switching too. I can't handle liars and that totally pissed me off. Besides, their service and their customer service sucks. I hope everyone who reads this switches to something else. They should be put out of business for the way they act. I can't believe we live in a "free market" society and a company would dare to act this way. Anyway, enough with that rant.
Also, I've gone on a 40 day fast, and this is day 27 of the fast. I'm doing well I think. Every now and then my blood sugar acts a little strange by getting low, but for the most part it stays pretty even. I'm also getting a few of what are called "healing-crises" and they feel awful!!! Like I've got the flu or something, I hate it. The thing that seems to help most is to drink a lot of water, do the enemas, and use lemon in my water. None of these things are permanent fixes, but they do provide some temporary relief.
I guess the reason for fast is mostly religious. I mean I also want to experience the healing that is associated with it, and I did do a 10 day Master Cleanse Diet before the fast, but I'm curious about all of the health claims I've read about. It really will detox your body. No question about that. I've lost about 40 pounds since beginning the water fast. I lost 10 pounds on the Master Cleanse Diet but gained a few back. In all, since October of last year I've lost a total of 80 pounds, which is amazing I think. Another reason I wanted to fast, is the detox affect it has on the body. The getting rid of all the chemicals which have been stored in the body for years without ever having had a chance to be eliminated. I do intend to get back into lifting weights and I do want to get a nice looking body. I've never had that and I really want it. After spending plenty of time in the gym, I just felt like I wasn't getting anywhere. And to look at my body now, you'd think I never even stepped foot in a gym. I have spent hours in the gym lifting weights and "bodybuilding" but I still don't have any muscle tone or definition. So I thought the best solution would be to just break everything down and start all over. It's like what Tim the Tool man Taylor said. "Before there can be construction, there must be destruction" and I guess those words have influenced me a lot. If you want to make an omelet, you have to break a few eggs, so to speak. So I'm breaking down my body. I'm taking it back to a good starting point, getting rid of a lot of fat and toxins which have been here for years.
Another reason for the fasting is spiritual. I picked the number of 40 days not because of anything my church or any religious leader told me to do; but rather, because it's what Jesus did. I want to know what a 40 day fast feels like in every way. To walk through it myself. So I'm also spending a lot of time reading the Bible. I've got a version with both the NIV and the Message together side by side. When I read one chapter of a book in the NIV, I go back and read the same part in the Message. So far, I'm just now beginning the book of Ruth. I doubt I'll finish the entire Bible by the end of this fast, but I'm going to give it a good try. I'm also noticing things about myself. I am becoming closer to God. I'm becoming a lot more spiritual. I am also a lot calmer than before and things which used to make me want to beat the living crap out of someone hardly phase me now. I did expect the spiritual part to be different than what it has been. I mean I seriously though I'd see angels and everything. When I started this fast I was planning on basically living the life of a monk…just staying in my bedroom, reading the Bible, meditating, and praying. The reality is far from it. I mean life still goes on and it doesn't care what you are trying to do. It'll tell you what it demands. So I've been trying to keep up with all of the demands of my day to day life and read as much of the Bible as I can. Also, just learning to relax is something which requires attention as well. But I'd say the spiritual experience I was looking for has been a much more gradual process. I will say this about it all though. I do feel I've become more spiritual in the last 27 days than I've been in years. It really does work fast. I would encourage anyone who feels as though their religious life needs to be renewed to fast. In fact, according to the Bible it's not a matter of "if" we fast, but rather "when" we fast. So it is actually expected that just as you pray, you'll also fast. It's important, and it's healthy.
I've also been trying to do yoga. I bought a DVD of yoga for beginners. I'm sure glad I did this rather than show up at a yoga class or school. I've got a lot to learn first, I believe. Also, I am not very flexible at all. I need to practice this a lot before I will feel comfortable attending a class. But hey, at least I won't be fat when I get there. The yoga is a lot more physically demanding than I thought it'd be. I mean I see little old ladies going to yoga classes. My grandmother goes to yoga classes three times a week. So I thought it'd be easy and that it was mostly just stretching and poses…far from it.
Let's see. One more thing I'm going through right now is that when I switched my grandmother to Direct TV, her remote control would not work with the new equipment. So…when I tried to hook it up to the computer, the computer wouldn't recognize it. It's a Logitech Harmony 900. Guess what?! The manufactures warranty went out about 9 months ago and since they don't have any "service" centers and they don't "service" any of their products but only replace them if they're still under warranty, we're pretty much just shit out of luck. I contacted MasterCard about the problem and they want everything under the moon to honor their warranty. One thing they wanted was a repair estimate. I faxed them all of the information they asked for and included a note that Logitech doesn't service their products. There are no replacement parts available and since they don't service anything they sell, they don't have "authorized" service centers to get an estimate from. No one on the planet earth is authorized to service a Logitech product. My grandmother paid $285 for the remote from Amazon. Logitech offered her 50% off of a new one at the MSRP price of $350. I felt like I had just gotten screwed. And now MasterCard is asking for me to produce a document which no man on earth is authorized to produce. I wrote them back. If they don't accept this, I'll make one phone call, and then I'm filing a complaint against them with the BBB, and I'll begin my internet campaign of going on every single website I can sharing my experiences with everyone in the world. I might even file a complaint with the States Attorney General. Whatever else I can find to do them legally, I will do. They've made this personal to me now. Oh yeah, and I've prayed about this as well, so I know God heard me.
That's about all the things going on lately. Like I said, I'll be back more often. Y'all have a great day!!!
