Sun And Moon Team - Sarah Style

Warning: The following post will have spoilers for the game Pokemon Sun and Moon





So I have this friend. Her name is Sarah. She likes Pokemon... except for when I like that Pokemon... Then she hates it. In fact... Our tastes are so clear that I feel confident in my ability to guess not only her final team, but her opinion on every new Pokemon that will be released in this new generation.

Below you will find my predictions.




Sarah's team
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1.Primarina - The only good starter
2.Salazzle - Pretty, Angry, Lizard lady.
3.Tsareena - Those legs
4.Alolan Ninetails - I didn't think they could make the best better… I was wrong
5.Lycanroc - Why can't my werewolf get a priority rock move?
6.Alolan Raichu - It's surfing pikachu all grown up!

Honourable Mentions
-------------------
Lunala - If only you weren't a legendary
Silvally - Diet Arceus
Ribombee - Cute bug… those are rare
Lurantis - Close second to Tsareena but those legs
Bewear - Kind of cute
Comfey - Cute but useless outside of doubles
Passimian - I know there's some way to use his ability to be badass
Oranguru - An ugly orang-utan but he could make my good pokemon better
Minior - A cute little star when his shields are down. Can I keep him that way?
Komala - Aw look he's sleepy.
Mimikyu - It's my two favourite types come to life, if only I didn't like so many fairies
Oricorio - A great filler with it's many types
Vikavolt - An actual useful bug… still pretty rare
Kommo-o - Looks kind of cool but I'm not 100%
Marshadow - Aw, why can't you be non legendary?
A-Sandslash - Shiny and new but how can you beat Ninetails?
A-Marowak - Ooh, ghost fire, drool.

Trash Heap
----------
-Decidueye
Some weird Owl that looks like he's on drugs. Why would I want him when I have a pink preying mantis and queen with those legs as possible grass types?
-Incineroar
Ew, a wrestling pokemon that looks like it should be a fighting type? This one doesn't even make sense and is a destroying two types that I like.
-Toucannon
A dumb bird with a dumber beak. Ugh why is he even here? Minccino does everything he does except better and with less weaknesses.
-Gumshoos
Why did they make a Trump pokemon? I mean his ability can be good but he's so weird.
-Crabominable
Another abominable snowman? What's with his weird claw openings? Why use him when there's a freaking ice fairy nine tails?
-Wishiwashi
The ugliest whale ever. Sure it's strong but it looks worst than Feebas without the awesome part where it turns into Milotic.
-Toxapex
Too many spikes, too defensive. Salazzle is better and better looking.
-Mudsdale
They made a horse… then covered it in mud… why?
-Araquanid
Kinda weird, but that ability is awesome. Not awesome enough to use though.
-Shiinotic (mushroom)
It's like Parasect's gay cousin. Pretty good unique move though.
-Golisopod
It's like one of those guys from the alien movies mixed with a gun dam then it turns out it's a chicken and runs away. Too blocky.
-Palossand
It's literally a piles of sand. What's with that dumb shovel radar thing? And it's ability is useless!
-Pyukumu
Puke is right.
-Tortunator
It's like Magcargo's angry cousin. Cool typing though. Too bad he looks like a shield covered in spikes.
-Togedemaru
This guy looks like something I would like but Scott likes it so I probably hate it.
-Bruxish
I take back what I said about the other guy. This is the ugliest thing I've ever seen.
-Drampa
It's like that dragon from the never ending story except… lamer.
-Dhelmise
It's sentient sludge attached to an anchor. What even is this game?
-Tapus
I don't use legendaries but if I did I think the pink one is cute.
-Solgaleo
Why did they have to make a lion uncool?
-Magearna
A robot fairy? That's so dumb.
-A-Ratticate
The ugly rat got uglier. What's with this game and facial hair?
-A-Dugtrio
It's just a Dugtrio with Fabio hair? Again with the weird hair thing.
-A-Persian
They took Persian who is pretty, made him grey, and gave him an ugly Garfield face wtf game freak?
-A-Golem
Again with the facial hair! What the heck?
-A-Muk
A rainbow Muk? Weird.
-A-Exeggcutor
I have no words for how weird this pokemon is
-UBs except Pheremosa
I don't use legendaries they look dumb anyways.
-UB-01 Beauty (Pheremosa)
Oh my god it's so pretty!

That Red Feeling

People think that I never get mad but that's not true. I get mad just like everyone else but I know how destructive anger can be so I try to quash it the moment I notice it flaring up.

Anger is violent and pointless. Actually, pointless isn't really the word. Anger can be good if it's challenged or focused. What I mean is that the typical actions of an angry person don't serve to make them feel any better.

A person makes you mad, you punch them. Suddenly you feel sorry for your snap reaction and on top of still feeling those burning embers you have that cold feeling of sadness to go along with it. An inanimate object makes you mad, you break it. Now you have the additional repair expenses on top of your previous rage making you even angrier than you were before. Someone says something that offends you and you relive every time you looked the other way as you ready your rebuttal. You begin fueling your own rage nurturing it, growing it, so that by the time you've gathered your thoughts you can have a proper explosive argument.

Anger is pointless. I learned that long ago. It's a byproduct of something crappy happening in your life and your reactions to it just serve to hurt you further. I've developed my ability to let go of my anger and channel that excess energy into something productive. When I get mad I once resorted immediately to violence, but now my first reaction has been downgraded to annoyance as I think about how I will have to reorganize my day and work around these feelings. Someone says something insulting, sigh, I guess I'll have to go to the gym. An inanimate object breaks down, sigh, I guess I'd better go for a walk.

This has served me well over the years and has earned me a reputation as quite a happy guy. People see me lifting weights and don't realize that each repetition is another insult I've let slide. I walk past my neighbours and they wave, not realizing it was either this or get into a shouting match with someone. The screen is filled with the bloody explosions of an action movie as no one realizes I'm living vicariously through the main character.

Writing this makes me sound like some horrible person with violence on their mind twenty four seven, but I believe that this is a very mature reaction to have. We've all heard how holding in your emotions will lead to the inevitable explosion, worst than if they had never held them in at all, but these all sound like mindless platitudes, repeated over and over because we know that this is what we should do. Surely finding constructive outlets for that cauldron we all have burning inside of us is a good thing?

But what do you do when that object breaks, that insult is heard, that offense taken, and you can't find the outlet you need? What happens when you're stuck somewhere. Jaw flexing uncontrollably. Cold tingles and goosebumps erupting on your skin. Arms twitching with barely controlled restraint as you mash the keyboard, each keystroke sounding like a blow. What do you do when you can't find a gym? When you can't leave your desk for a walk? When you can't pop in a violent DVD?

First you start to panic. What will happen if someone interrupts me in my time of weakness? Will I snap and attack them? You sit and feel the muscles in your arm and dread the damage you would do. Was your heart always beating that fast? Are you only noticing it now because you've begun thinking about it? You need to relax, you've stopped tapping the keyboard and are instead pounding it into submission. Please, oh please just give me some space so I can calm down.

Sometimes a simple joke can be enough to calm you down and give you an outlet for that pent up energy. Like how despite my temper problems, or maybe even because of them, my favourite superhero is The Incredible Hulk. I have reminders of him everywhere, a superhero calendar, a stuffed bear in his likeness, even a green water bottle. Which reminds me, why is a character who is associated so completely with anger, coloured green? When I think green I think of sickness or nature. When I think of anger I see only red. Even when I try to describe what it feels like to be so angry I can only say that it just FEELS red. I've never seen red like the old saying goes, but I have felt it. It doesn't make any sense to say it but I feel like if I were to close my eyes and just focus hard enough I could almost see it, sort of like a word that's on the tip of your tongue or a muscle you don't know how to flex. It's there, just out of reach.

I write and I write and as the words flow forth I can feel my pulse slow. My cold skin warms and my goosebumps recede. My breathing returns to normal. I can feel the ache begin in my arms as the finally stop flexing. That red feeling is gone and now I can't even remember what it was like. It's like a dream how it was so vivid and there but now that it's over I can't even fully describe it.

I sigh in relief as I hit save after finding a brand new outlet.

Competition Finale And Update

My company's weight loss competition has finished and the numbers are in. Everyone was stressing and worrying waiting for the final tally but unfortunately we only came in second place. The team we were neck and neck with the whole competition finished hard and shocked us all with their numbers. A lot of our members were disappointed with the results and grudgingly congratulated the other team for their hard work but I was happy to see that there were a lot of smiles on our members. The end of the competition caused us all to step back and realize all the physical as well as mental changes we were making and we were all happy with the results. Also, after a week of freedom, we decided to continue helping each other, losing weight, and getting healthier all year long!

Now before we finish talking about the competition there's something I'd like to address. A lot of people were making suggestions to me on ways I could make a few extra pounds for the sake of the competition. Most of these tips were super helpful and I want to thank each one of you but a few people suggested some pretty drastic ideas. Crash diets and no water might seem like a great way to shed a few pounds in a short time but they're very unhealthy. While it's true that some of these practices will work they can damage your body and cause only short term weight loss. Most of the time you will struggle with this new practice and your weight will snap back to what it was originally and then some. Weight loss should be a slow gradual process that you stick to for a long time. There's no cheat code that will fix it all in a week. With that said I wanted to say thanks again to the people who offered suggestions and encouragement to me over the past few months. You guys rock!

Surrounding yourself with positive people with similar goals can only help your weight loss so I'm so proud of my team and their continued resolve to lose weight. We've even started doing our own weigh ins and continued our little weight loss program of our own. Having a weekly check in is such a great help to keep you on track and losing. It's important to keep it in the forefront of your mind with any tricks you can use. I myself have been updating my computer's background with a checklist of items I need to do each week as well as a new funny picture to keep things fresh!

Here's this week's "The Rules" background.

I did learn one new thing recently though. Now that I've been keeping track of my weight loss through use of my awesome excel document, I've learned a bit more about the effects of weight lifting and aerobic exercises on my body.

During the competition I was focused wholely on aerobic exercise since I knew that would have the biggest effect on my weight and it was a competition after all. I promised myself that I could switch back to weight lifting when the competition was done. During the competition I was maintaing my goal of at least 2 lbs each week but once it finished I swapped half of my aerobics for weight lifting. It felt good to lift weights again but when I did my weekly weigh in I found that I had lost only 1.4 lbs falling short of my goal. Thinking I had just had a bad week I switched my routine to entirely weight lifting to cheer myself up. The next weigh in I found out that I only lost .1 lbs.

I've spoken about weight lifting in the past and mentioned how I know it's easy to slack when you have to take breaks between those heavy lifts but I felt that I had been staying pretty honest and doing a similar amount of work. After a bit of research and discussions I came to the consensus that I was indeed losing fat, but replacing it with muscle. I could lift more in every exercise in my routine and felt healthier but body fat is much harder to track than weight. Realizing that I would best accomplish my goals by sticking with aerobic exercises I have all but sworn off weight lifting until I have gotten my weight down to a more manageable level. I know that weight lifting is still good for me if I'm honest and work the whole time I'm there but it's better for me motivation wise to see those numbers every week in an easy to track way. Once I committed to these changes I saw my weight loss go back to it's original numbers and I'm happy with the change.

Not wanting to be too stagnant I also added a few more things to my checklist. Now in addition to counting calories, using the stairs, and going to the gym, I also have to drink one large bottle of water at work, and lift weights when I'm home. This may sound like I'm going back on what I've said but the gym is aerobic only, while my free weights at home are just for fun. That way I can fully commit to my new plan and still get a small bit of weight lifting done!

I am now 302.4 down almost 34 lbs this year and within range of my first goal of breaking that 300lbs mark!

Question of the day: What are your healthy life goals?

#weightlossjourney

Goal Setting

Our contest's second to last weigh in is here and the numbers are a little disappointing. After two weeks of lax dieting and my focus shifting to weight lifting over aerobics, I've only lost .2 lbs. I had known that this week wouldn't be my best one but I must admit that my heart sank a bit at the sight of such a small change. I then had to try and keep my spirits up as I accepted what I felt was undeserved praise from my friends, teammates, and fiancé. At the end of the day I know that any improvement is a good thing, but when you're hoping for big numbers and wind up with much smaller results it can be a hard thing to get past. But just like every other week we're going to use these bad feels to come up with a plan to promote better results in the future!

Something that I've been lacking on is writing out my goals clearly so I can come up with a plan to achieve them! Rule number 1 of trying to achieve any sort of self improvement is to simply write it down. From there you can expand on it and really flesh out your goal.

When I started, my original goal was to lose weight. Now that is a poor goal if I've ever seen one. Where's the numbers? Where's the time limit? If I have such a vague idea I'll never follow through with it. When do you want to attain this goal? How are you going to do it?

In order to make an effective goal I'm quite fond of using the SMART system. SMART is a mnemonic you can use to set effective goals.
Specific: Be specific and explain exactly what you want to achieve.
Measurable: How will you gauge if you are succeeding?
Attainable: Your goal must be possible.
Relevant: The goal should be important to you.
Time-bound: What is your deadline?

Using the SMART mnemonic let's redo our goal. My new goal is to lose 2 lbs. a week every week right up until my wedding date of October 8th taking me from 317 lbs to 259 lbs in 29 weeks. Now that is a goal. An honest admission of my starting weight, with a clear start and end date, including how fast I plan to achieve it and what my end result will be.

Now that we've got out goal, we can't let it just be words. Find a place where we can see it everyday and write it nice and big. We're gonna need that reminder so that our goal is constantly at the forefront of our minds. Next up we have to keep track of it! Grab yourself notebook or your favourite software and start keeping track. I'm quite fond of microsoft excel for keeping track of numbers and dates so in goes our starting weight. Once that is done it's brainstorming time. What steps are we going to take in order achieve our goal? I've had success with calorie counting even though I've been forgetting to enter it so how about we aim for entering it 5/7 days a week? Going to the gym has been a big help so why don't we aim for going twice a week for an hour of cardio? Stairs are an easy addition so why not take the stairs once a day at work for a total of five times a week?

Now we've got a clear goal thanks to our use of the SMART mnemonic, a plan and checklist so we can hold ourselves accountable to that goal, reminders to keep us thinking about it, and I don't know about you but I'm feeling super motivated!

Don't let your dreams be dreams!
#weightlossjourney

Transparency and Distended Bellies

We're coming up on our fourth weigh in (not counting the starting) and I'm excited and nervous about my results.

I've been continuing with the squat challenge and have increased to the point where I can do 100 squats in a sitting. Sure my legs are shaking and I can't walk confidently for a while afterwards but progress is progress. Just yesterday I managed to do 260 in a night which I believe is my current record! Speaking of squats, I've started developing some silly habits when it comes to them. I play a lot of video games and when I get to a particularly long loading screen, or a long que to enter a dungeon I've started grinding out some squats while I wait. I can only imagine how silly I look, holding a controller in my hands and squatting repeatedly while staring at the T.V. But it doesn't stop there. The other day I was showering before bed and realized that I hadn't met my squat challenge quota for the night. Instead of finishing, towelling off, finding a spot and cranking out some squats before bed I just stood there in the shower brushing my teeth and squatted under the spray. Now that's multitasking!

It hasn't been all good this week though. Earlier we had a potluck in my department for someone's birthday and there was so much delicious food that I couldn't help but go over my calorie limit for the day. I know it's fine to have a sort of cheat day every now and again but the following day we had the same thing. Two days in a row of overeating and boy was I feeling it. On the plus stuffing myself those two days in a row made me realize something. I've been steadily decreasing my meal size and I feel that by now I've gotten to the point where my meals are close to what the average person should be eating. On those two days I ate what several months ago would have been perfectly normal meals for me. The sheer contrast in meal size really drove home the point that I was eating way more than I needed to. On both days I not only ate my fill, but stuffed my stomach to bursting. This is what pre-2016 Me thought it meant to be full. Growing up I had just thought that that bursting almost queasy feeling was what people were talking about when they said they were full.

When it comes to this month's challenge in my company's weight loss challenge I think that we had all given up any thoughts of winning once we saw the statistics for week one. The top team for the week had more than doubled our second place position. This was a bit of a disappointment for my whole team and I know a lot of people pulled back or gave up entirely but I was happy to see that most of my team were still soldiering on with a focus on weight loss instead of winning the challenge. People were sending challenges back and forth and even though our numbers did dip, the change was only small and we were still grinding out some pretty big numbers. Another surprise I was happy to see was that I wasn't even the top person on my team numbers wise. I had figured that as soon as those intimidating numbers were shared that my team would lose it's motivation and I would be the only one logging any numbers but no, I wasn't even the top person on my team! Some people did fall off and stopped entering numbers but at least two people in my team are out producing me. Go team green!

I've also come to a decision with regard to my weight. I'm by no means a shy person but I've decided that I'm really going to be open with the numbers on my weight. I've danced around it saying things like I weigh a lot, or I've lost a little but I want to be 100% transparent. I started this competition at 336.2 lbs and as of our last weigh in I am down to 319 even. My goal weight which according to the math of my calorie counting ap I should reach in a little over 500 days of good behaviour is 186 lbs. I found this number by consulting google to find out what my healthy weight would be according to my height and age. There were several different weights according to a few different formulas and I may have picked the largest number but as a longterm goal I thought it was a good place to start. Also it ends in 86 and I just plain like that number.

I've also noticed a few things in the past few weeks both good and bad. First off, I've begun to fall off with my calorie counting. The counting feels less necessary to me now that I'm sort of on track with meal size as well as cutting back snacks but I know I have to tighten that back up in order to keep from straying. As a reminder I've started setting the connected website as my homepage so every time I use the internet I still get a reminder to enter my food. I've also been ignoring the gym recently. After a painful introduction to lunges which it took me a few days to recover from I took some time off from the gym and have been putting it off far too often. I've caught myself justifying my actions by saying "oh I'm still doing my squats every night, I don't need the gym too," or something along those lines but I need to nip this in the bud before I drop the activity entirely. Speaking of nipping things in the bud, I've also noticed that I was beginning to develop a habit of grabbing a large breakfast from the cafeteria at work. Just like with the gym I always had a justification of "my lunch is small today so I'll have a big breakfast." The moment I realized I was doing this I stopped it entirely. That was just too tempting and I knew it would become a permanent thing if I didn't stop it immediately. On to more positive things, I've noticed that some of my clothing has been feeling loser. At the time of writing this I'm currently wearing a shirt that was almost embarrassing since the pulling of the buttons would create lines on my stomach as the shirt pulled tight. It now fits me almost as good as any other shirt in my wardrobe. This brought me to another goal I will be adding to my list. I have one specific shirt which used to be my favourite unfortunately I haven't been able to wear it in several years. This red silk dragon covered piece of clothing is straight out of the 90s but god did I ever love it. My newest goal is to be able to one day wear it like I used to in college.

What I've learned:
Stop bad habits the moment you notice them. That egg sandwich might be nice to tide you over this morning but before long a big fast food breakfast could become part of your daily routine. Learn to notice these signs and put a stop to them!
My meals have gotten much smaller in the past few months. Those two days of putting up with a grossly distended belly have just reaffirmed that I'm making positive changes in my life and need to keep it up!

#WeightLossJourney

Disappointment Management

Second weigh in is in the books and I'm a little disappointed in my results. My previous weigh in showed that I lost 9.3 lbs in 2 weeks and I know that was probably a bit too high so I was aiming a bit lower and hoping for 7 lbs. Unfortunately when I stepped on the scales I saw I had only lost 2.8 lbs though. I know, I know, I should be happy with any progress no matter how small but it was a bit of a disappointment to go from 9 to 3 so quickly.

I allowed myself to sit and wallow in disappointment for a while just to get it out of my system. I feel it's important to let those feelings out rather than bottle them up and try to put on a happy face. After feeling as though I had spent enough time on it I then started making plans for the next weigh in. First, I decided that I was eating too many cookies and my morning snack had to go, Bam. Next up was my coffee. I had been planning to try to drink it black, and since I didn't particularly like the taste to begin with no milk and sugar didn't seem like a huge stretch, Bam. Third I decided to tackle the stairs. I wanted to start taking the stairs but the people I usually go on break with don't have the same goals so we always took the elevator. I made a new friend who I could take the stairs with every day and now the stairs are part of my morning routine, Bam. Goals in hand I started feeling motivated instead of disappointed.

With the weigh in came news of this month's challenge which would net the winning team a few lbs off of their totals giving them a better chance at the competition. The announcement wasn't exactly… well received… by most of the competitors though. At first it was telling us that we had to complete a minimum amount of 5 different exercises and the first team to complete them all would be the winners. The amounts were about what someone in training for an upcoming event would maintain so they were all pretty lofty goals. That combined with the fact that some of the people in the competition were overweight and had joint issues led to some unhappy campers. Burpees are torture and should not imposed on people you like. After receiving some emails they changed the competition to whatever team had the highest total number of exercises at the end of the month would be the winners.

Once the announcement was accepted and circulated my team went into full on motivation mode sharing tips and issuing friendly challenges. One woman shared a squat challenge as something to aim for since squats were one of the counted exercises. I in turn challenged her to double up on so we could both really flex out some high numbers. The team aspect of this competition has been a huge help for me. Having a group with similar goals where you can offer help or a friendly push is so helpful when you're feeling under motivated. I have them to thank for a lot of my progress both personally and in the competition.

What I've learned.
Be careful when you set your goals. Goals are necessary and are a big help when you're trying to achieve something but beware of setting too high of a goal. The backlash of not achieving a goal can sometimes set you back further.
When you do feel disappointed make sure to embrace that feeling. Don't push it off because it won't go away. Let yourself feel it then think about improvements you can make. Use it to fuel a positive change and that disappointment might wind up helping!
Teamwork, teamwork, teamwork! Find a group that has the same goals in mind. You can play off of each other and the energy from a good team can be super helpful in your #weightlossjourney!

Snacks and first weighin

Late update incoming!

Two weeks down and my first weigh in has come and gone. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I had lost 9.3 lbs!

It's hard to pick out any one thing to attribute my success so far to but if I had to pick my top reason I would say it would be my calorie counting. Counting calories has really made me evaluate what I eat and has made me realize that so many of my meals were far bigger than they needed to be. It also helped with snacking because I would look at my calories and think hmm, if I only need these many calories and I'm already at my limit, am I actually hungry? Most often the answer is no but for the few times that it isn't I have some small snacks to satisfy those little cravings.

I've also changed the way I buy food as well. Instead of buying one large item and getting a good deal I've instead been buying a greater number of smaller items. I know that I wind up spending more this way but I also know myself and that my own lack of self control would cause me to eat the entire stash. But, if I buy smaller portions I can eat a single grab a single portion, walk away, and then the cravings are easier to control.

Some people reading this have pointed out that counting calories doesn't mean you're eating better. You could eat nothing but pizza in small amounts and theoretically stay under your calorie limit but a diet of pizza alone would be extremely unhealthy. These people are 100% right and this is by no means a diet guide. This is my own personal experience and I visited a doctor to learn if there was anything I should be watching out for. In my case it was the sheer number of calories that was the greatest danger so that is my starting focus. Once that is under control I can work on other parts of my diet like lowering my salt intake for example.

I suppose the number one take way from this should be that before starting any changes in your diet you should visit a doctor to see if there's anything you need to keep an eye out for. Assuming that you're in the same situation as me and weight alone is your biggest hurdle then counting calories is the way to go!

What I've learned:
-Buy a greater number of smaller items to help fight snacking.
-My body sometimes snacks out of habit, keep an eye on those calories to know if your body needs the food or not.

#weightlossjourney

Weight Loss Week One

Week one is down and I'm feeling super motivated!

Calorie counting has been a great help. I can't count the number of times where the simple activity of finding out how much that extra food would cost me then entering it into the ap on my phone has made me turn down seconds, or skip a section of the meal I know is particularly calorie laden. Just yesterday I was eating a chicken cesar salad and was surprised at how many calories are in one. The meal was also served with garlic bread which I love but as I sat and stared at it (guessing at how many calories it might contain) I realized I wasn't hungry to the point that I needed it. In fact, I saved some of the salad and the garlic bread for my girlfriend to have for lunch the next day!

Counting calories hasn't been my only hobby though, I've also started adding some cardio to my weekly routine. Cardio has been the bane of my existence for as long as I can remember. It was something everyone had to do and since I was overweight, I had to do even more. For a while I managed to assuage my guilt over skipping cardio by doing weight lifting instead. Where cardio was boring, weight lifting was fun. Where cardio was long, weight lifting was quick. Where cardio seemed to do nothing short term, weight lifting gave noticeable results almost weekly. Now as I look back at my previous experience with cardio I realize that most of my issues stemmed from a lack of motivation and giving up too early.

I want to be healthy and make a change. I'm surrounding myself with positive people and activities while also putting an end to all the half truths or trades I've been doing with myself.

Speaking of activities, the company I work at is having a biggest loser competition! While I don't know much about the t.v. show this friendly competition is different. Anyone who was interested reported for weigh ins where their weight was kept 100% private. Then the keeper of the weights divided all the participants up into six teams. Each team has three months to lose weight and at the end one team will be picked as the victors! Being placed in a team is surprisingly motivational. I hadn't realized how much it would help to have people to talk to about the same issues I'm having. We've been swapping tips, issuing challenges, joking around, but most of all, motivating each other! You're not just exercising for you, you're working for the whole team. You won't just hurt yourself by eating that chocolate bar, you're affect the team. While that second one may seem a bit negative, sometimes that little extra thought has been enough to stop me from doing something I really shouldn't have.

All in all, this week has been an amazing one and I look forward to my team's first official weigh in next week!

What I've learned
Overestimate your food's calories and underestimate the ones you've burned. Nobody's perfect so we will all forget to enter food sometimes. It could be as small as big as an entire meal, or as small as the dipping sauce. Overestimating your calories can counteract those mistakes and even if you don't miss anything you'll be pleasantly surprised in the end.

Being part of a team rocks! From motivation to tips an advice, having a group of supportive people is enormously helpful. I know I've gushed about it already but I can't recommend it enough for anyone out there trying to lose weight

#weightlossjourney

Weight Loss Journey

I've decided to start documenting my weight loss plans for 2016.

Previously I hadn't really taken it seriously. Sure, I went to the gym and everything but I never really committed to losing weight, just growing muscle and looking manly. In my head I thought that growing muscle was just as good since it would help me in the long run and while that isn't a necessarily a lie, I know now that it was a cop out so I wouldn't force myself to commit to the real cardio I truly needed (and hated) to do. Now I'm stopping my muscle focus and switching almost entirely to aerobic.

This isn't just some new years resolution either. I am overweight and need to make some changes in my life if I want to live long enough to retire. It's a serious issue I've danced around for long enough and now I need to fully commit to making a change. My hope is that by documenting the process I will be encouraged (or maybe guilted) into continuing.

Here are the tools I have at my disposal:
The Lose it ap for iPhone. I'm counting my calories being as honest as possible so I can't just splurge and eat an entire cake or something. This should give me a good idea of what I should and shouldn't eat.
The gym at work. In the same vein as doing weights instead of cardio, I also told myself that doing cardio over lunch would cause me to smell bad all day at work. Now I'm not letting that continue and am taking an extra ten minutes out of my lunch so I'll have the time to shower and change. No more excuses!
An irish gal with a temper. My girlfriend has been after me not to eat too much and I've tried to sneak around her to get the food I've wanted. I'm officially asking for her help and want her to give me the tough love I'll need. One thing if you're reading this though, I refuse to give up pizza cold turkey! But I will instead go for an extra walk with you to make up for the splurging <3 br="">
Here's what I've learned:
Oh wow bread buns are bad for calories. 300 for a single little fluff that barely tastes like anything? That's the first thing that needs to go!
I put way too much milk and sugar in my coffee. I didn't realize that with enough of those, my coffee could be as much calories as an entire meal!

Here's to a productive 2016, good luck everyone! #weightlossjourney

Bus Karma

Have you ever experienced the joys of bus Karma? Bus Karma is the rare event when someone is rewarded for positive behaviour or punished for negative behaviour… all while enjoying the use of public transit.

It's a theory I've been working on for quite some time now. I'm a huge fan of the concept of Karma and a firm believer in it. I don't believe that there is some cosmic force ruining people's day because they stole someone's digimon cards when they were six, or high-fiving people who shared their last donut. I do however, believe that if you are an all around shitty person, bad things will happen to you. Just like if you're a generally nice person, good things tend to happen.

Let's take a real world example. Someone who's rude all day long should expect the cop who pulled him over to give him the full fine instead of a warning when he cracks a particularly offensive joke. Conversely the nice guy helped his friends move might be surprised when that same friend takes him out to lunch to say thanks.

Bus karma is this same idea, just applied to public transit. That little old lady who got onto the packed bus could probably use your seat, why not offer it to her? Suddenly your favourite spot opens up and you get to sit with a perfect view. That jerk who bumped into a stroller without apologizing as he hurried to get that open seat? I bet he doesn't realize it's open because someone spilled coffee there.

In the end it might just be my naivety only making me remember the good times while forgetting the times when I did something good without anything good happening in return, but if that same thought process makes me happy at the end of the day then maybe that was in fact my reward.

Robocraft

I haven't written anything in a while and as much as I'd like to say I've been busy with work, or helping my fiancé with university or working on my children's story, I can't lie to you. In reality I've been spending every spare moment on a new game… Robocraft.

When I say every spare moment, I mean it. When I'm not playing it, I'm building vehicles in it. When I'm not building vehicles, I'm watching YouTubers for inspiration. When I'm not watching YouTube, I'm trolling the forums.

For god sakes don't play this game! Save yourselves! Get out while you can!

In Robocraft you build an almost Minecraft style vehicle like a tank, car, plane, or anything under the sun, strap guns to it, and kill your friends in the traditional team death match format.

As you play you earn experience and RP. Experience increases the level of your account, unlocking more and more parts for you to use, while RP is used to buy these new parts. A micro transaction system can be used to buy Galaxy Cash, or GC for short to buy up these parts much faster. Or you can use this GC to purchase premium days where you're given double rewards every match while also giving anyone participating an extra 5% reward. A nice little bonus for anyone playing 100% free.

With the inclusion of mech style walking legs my absorption into the game had become complete as I created bot after bot with those parts, trundling my way into battle.

You can find Robocraft online at RobocraftGame.com or in the Steam Store but if you like having free time, relationships, or a proper sleep schedule, keep your distance!

Soma

Image from SethNemo of deviantart.com

Soma is a survival horror video game from Frictional Games who you might know as the creators of the Amnesia series.

Let me first start by saying that I am a giant, bearded, scaredy cat who can't play a survival horror game to save his life. This isn't just a weak attempt at self deprecating humour, it's important that you know this so that when I tell you how much I loved this game, you realize how much a handicap it started with for me. I'll attempt to give this game the kind of review it deserves while remaining as spoiler free as possible.

Soma isn't your typical survival horror game. Where most games rely on cheap jumpscares and horrifying visuals to get your heart racing, Soma is more of a cerebral game that sets a creepy atmosphere and 90% of the scares you get are all in your head.

The game tells the story of Simon who, after a car crash in which his friend dies and he sustains a serious brain injury, signs up for an experimental brain scan to try to find out what can be done to help. After a the bright flash of the scan Simon opens his eyes to a dilapidated yet somewhat futuristic facility. After some searching he finds out he has been brought several years into the future and this facility's occupants are semi-mechanical monsters who attack him on site.

This game is an odd one to review because the game doesn't follow the typical idea of working towards a goal then being given a huge reveal that sets the tone for an epic finale. Instead, the twist is revealed pretty early on and the rest of the game is spent thinking about the implications of everything you find out. You are also given the occasional ethical decision where the choices are never black and white causing you to agonize for hours afterwards wondering if you made the right decision.

My first experience with the game was through a let's play by the YouTuber Markiplier. His playthough was not only entertaining but he also gave his input on several of the ethical debates brought up in the game. If after reading this you're still not sure if the game is for you, or you can't afford the $29.99 price tag then check his videos.

Soma takes the best parts of several games to make an amazing thought provoking, psychological thrill ride. From the Bioshock reminiscent level design to the Amnesia-like fleeing in terror, Soma is a beautiful game that gets my seal of approval.

Blindness

Image from Wikipedia

The novel:
Blindness is a novel by award winning author, José Saramago. The novel tells the story of a plague of blindness and it's effects on society and the world as it spreads.

During a literary discussion with a colleague at work I mentioned my love of epidemic and zombie stories; She, who wasn't as avid a zombie fan as I was, told me that one of my stories reminded me of the novel Blindness. After hearing her brief summary, I was hooked and bought it that very day.

Any reader who picks up this book will first have to deal with the fact that this novel is written in a very unique style of commas replacing periods, making for almost run-on sentences and a bit of confusion as to whether they're reading exposition or dialogue. Anyone who is worried about this confusion can pick up the audiobook version like myself which has no such confusion. Regardless of the version they pick up, some readers may be a bit put off by how verbose the writing may be, but fear not, for if you are intimidated by this lengthy read you can always check out the film which I will talk about later.

The novel tells the story of various people starting with their "Patient Zero," as he begins accidentally infecting anyone he comes into contact with until we are introduced to the main character, The Doctor's Wife, who is immune. We then follow her throughout the story and see the downfall of civilization through her eyes as her immediate group keeps her immunity secret to avoid the scorn and dependance that would inevitably follow.

One of my personal favourite elements of the story was that no one is ever mentioned by name because as the author points out early on, without a face to attach it to, names begin to lose meaning. People instead are referred to by titles that better describe them like: The man with the eyepatch, or The woman with dark glasses, or even The boy with the squint. Normally the names of characters become blurred or forgotten as I move from book to book but the titles make each character unique and I can't picture myself confusing The woman with dark glasses from Blindness, with Wendy Torrance from The Shining.

All in all, the novel Blindness was a great read with some very intense scenes that will add a unique flair to anyone's reading library.

 

Image from Wikipedia

 The film:
I both love, and hate watching movies based off of books I've read. I love the fact that I can see someone's interpretation of a much loved character and hate the inevitable loss of detail that comes from compressing a novel into a two hour film. Fortunately, I am happy to say that the film Blindness, is probably the most faithful film based on a novel that I have ever seen. I'm not saying that it was a perfect transposition by any means. There were scenes and characters that I hoped to see from the novel, but I felt that everything that was removed was chosen correctly since it did not push the story forward.

The film stars Julianne Moore as The doctor's wife, the one person immune to the epidemic, and Mark Ruffalo as The doctor, the reluctant leader of their immediate group. With an all star cast of some of my favourite actors, I was anticipating a new entrant to my top ten movie list so I was surprised to see how it's ratings were much lower than the book. The same colleague, after hearing how confused I was by the difference in ratings loaned me her copy of the film and suggested I find out for myself.

I was curious how the film would depict the frequent references to filth and nudity that became a constant when society began it's downfall, but I was happy to see that both were downplayed since, in a visual medium, the briefest image of either would be far more evocative. Instead, nudity became a simple fact of life where some people in the background would embrace it while the main characters in the foreground were more reserved. The filth as well which was described in great detail in the novel, was instead restrained to trash and messes on the wall as the entire building began to look more grungy and dilapidated.

One scene in particular jumps out at me and I'll try to remain as spoiler free as possible as I describe it. At one point, one particular group demands women from another, and during the ensuing conflict one of the women dies. The remaining women, battered and filthy, return with the woman and take great care to clean her before they then bury her. The scene in the book was quite intense and marked a turning point for The doctor's wife so I was nervous that the film would fall short. In the film they gave an honest representation of the scene and through use of lighting washed out the details of the woman's body so although they were moving and washing a naked woman the focus was instead on the care the surrounding characters took with the body and not on the nudity itself. The scene was so well done that I prefer it to my visualization from the novel which is a rare occurrence for me.

It wasn't until near the end of the film that I remembered that the characters were described by titles instead of names and since the film had little to no narration, they were used even less. The fact that it took me that long to notice made me realize that names in general were less important than I thought to a film which was very interesting concept to me that I continued thinking on long after the movie was over.

After finishing the movie and returning to my colleague with my thoughts, it became obvious as to why the ratings were so different between the novel and book. The novel was a great story full of emotion, conflict, and growth and the film did an equal, and at times, better job at showing this but there were two fundamental reasons why the film would fall short. The first was that this was in essence, a story about seeing and not seeing. As you read you can picture both sides, visualizing what it is like to see the problems that The doctor's wife would experience, while imagining what it would be like for the surrounding characters who were wandering around without our most integral of senses. When we see what is going on as we do with the film we are not able to block the visual stimulus and imagine what it is like not to see. The second is that people who watch movies are more likely to prefer action, or fast paced and over the top scenes. Both of which are lacking in the novel. The film which is more of a slow building drama and commentary on society doesn't fit the typical archetype of a high rated movie. That doesn't mean it's a bad movie, but it does mean that it is not the average movie goers cup of tea.

Conclusion:
In the end, both the novel, and the movie have their merits. If you're looking for fantasy or sci-fi the novel isn't for you, just like an action movie buff would probably not enjoy the film. For those of you who want an intense slow building dramatic commentary on society like the one I've described then Blindness would be a great addition to your library.

Crimson Peak

Guillermo del Toro's Crimson Peak is a visually stunning gothic horror movie starring Tom Hiddleston as the english aristocrat, Sir Thomas Sharpe, and Mia Wasikowska as the haunted aspiring author, Edith Cushing.

After hearing about this movie our mutual love for gothic romance overcame my girlfriend and my fear of horror movies to the point that we decided to take a trip to the theatre. Our one concession was that the trip happened early afternoon where we could escape safely into the sunshine once it was over.

I am happy to report that my preparations weren't necessary. The movie was not the horror filled thrill ride I was expecting, but was instead a gorgeous trip through victorian america with the occasional visually striking violent or paranormal scene spread throughout. The ever-present red clay that Crimson Peak gets it's name from also makes for some great excuses to add a dash of red to any scene without anyone batting an eye.

The ghosts that were my main concern when preparing for the movie, were so unique, and beautifully created that I frequently found myself staring in amazement rather than horror.

And for all the ladies (and the occasional gentleman as well) out there, I'm happy to report that there is in fact a bare Hiddleston hiney at one point in the film.

All in all Crimson Peak was a beautiful movie full of scenes you'll be talking about for years that is a must for any fan of gothic romance, Guilermo del Toro, or regular old horror.

Oktoberfest

So this past weekend I went to visit my fiancé's family and also to check out the area's Oktoberfest!

The small Quebec town of Ladysmith has a (proportionally) large German population so they go all out when October comes around. Dancers put on shows, Musicians played the traditional music, everyone was all dressed up and you couldn't find a single square foot that didn't have some sort of German decoration on it.

Bratwurst was eaten, crafts were bought, and dancing was done but my favourite part of all had to be the parade. While I sort through all the pictures so I can show you all the best of the best here's a short video I took during the parade to whet your appetite.

Breakup Wharf

While I was in college I loved exploring, and since my college was in a beautiful coastal area I loved visiting the water and going for walks. One spot in particular was gorgeous. A twenty minute walk along the water, and a quick jog over some locks would lead you to long beautiful wharf that was far enough away from the shore to be quiet while pointing right into the setting sun for a great view. I would even drop by on occasion when I wanted a change in scenery or some time to think.

Fast forward five years and I'm dating a girl and want to take her out on a nice romantic little walk. What could be more romantic than a nice sunset stroll by the water? I refuse to tell her where we're going, insisting that it must be a surprise, but the closer we get to the spot the more hesitant she becomes. Once we get within sight of the wharf she stops cold.
"You're not breaking up with me are you?" she asks.
"No," I reply. "Of course not, we're on a romantic walk!"
"Then why are you bringing me to the breakup wharf?" She exclaims, pointing at my wonderful spot.
Put at ease by my confusion she goes on to explain that this is the spot all the local college guys would take their girlfriends when they wanted to break up with them. The seclusion of the area allowed privacy for the crying or screaming that might come of it, and the long walk back gave everyone time to recompose themselves. At this point I realized in horror that I HAD in fact brought two different girls here to break up with them.

Now we occasionally drop by that beautiful spot and laugh at the silly memory, but each time I make sure to tell my girlfriend, (who is now my fiancé) that no, I am not breaking up with her.

Joe Ledger vs The Iron Druid

A few years ago I rediscovered the joy of reading and have been making my way through a few books every month. Unfortunately with that I also discovered the pain of falling in love with a series then having to wait months, or even years as the author writes the latest book in the series. In order to pass the time as I wait for the newest book in a series I have decided to reread two of my old favourite series and wanted to share them with you.

The Joe Ledger Series and The Iron Druid Chronicles.

The Joe Ledger Series tells the tale of eponymous hero Joe Ledger as he joins a secret military organization called the Department of Military Science, or DMS for short. The DMS only hires the best of the best and the creator who goes by the code-name Church, gives his people the best toys available. A running joke through the series is how whenever something is requested, Church always seems to have a "friend in the industry." Whether it is the latest in bio-weapon protection or a circus tent to protect a large crime scene, Church is always able to get what they need. The DMS handles the biggest and baddest problems which could occasionally wipe out all life as we know it. The first novel  is about a mad scientist who creates a doomsday plague that turns people into actual zombies… Yup… zombies. Picture Mission Impossible meets Walking Dead.

Probably my favourite part of this whole series are the characters. The main character is nearly insane and struggles with the horrors his work forces him to deal with. His boss is a stoic man who exudes power and capability while simultaneously maintaining a secret identity and hinting at a dark past. Their enemies are unique and deadly while being so over the top evil that you feel great whenever the good guys land their big finishers. But the best part of all is how each character grows and changes throughout the series. The good guys are not invincible badasses, they are hurt and changed by the problems they face and in such a dangerous world some of them even die.

All in all this is a great series for anyone who loves a well written action movie of a book with an interesting cast that has to deal with some of the craziest situations imaginable.

The Iron Druid Chronicles follows Atticus O'Sullivan, a 2100 year old druid who maintains the the outward facade of a college aged occult bookstore owner. Atticus lives in a world of magic and supernatural monsters where all pantheons of gods exist and earth is the crossroads they all share. Atticus is the last druid as previously, gods who feared their ability to enter any pantheon and possibly kill the gods therein, led a crusade against them and all but wiped them out. He managed to survive this long by hiding and changing his identity, bouncing from place to place as people get suspicious of him. The first book in the series starts with Atticus being found by one of his greatest enemies and deciding it is finally time to stop running and decides to fight back.

My favourite part of this whole series is how the author is able to weave all the different pantheons together and explain their interactions. One particularly funny moment is where one goddess of death explains how several of them get together and visit war zones and have a bit of girl's night out together. The author even goes on to explain how they could possibly all exist, talking about how they get their power from the faith of their followers and how everyone hates Thor lately because his ego has become so inflated after the popularity of all the movies about him. One of the more interesting characters of the series is a Russian thunder god named Perun. Perun is a jovial man who's mass is only matched by his body hair and he's so likable that I can't help but root for him no matter what situation he is in!

The Iron Druid Chronicles is a funny series with a sprinkling of epic god battles that is a must read for anyone who enjoys supernatural or godly stories.

The socially acceptable F-word.

The topic of feminism is a tough one to talk about openly. Use that mighty F-word in a casual conversation and you can immediately see people gathering on either side to defend their stance on the subject.

According to Merriam-Webster, Feminism is "1. The theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes" or "2. Organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests." Feminism is about equality. It's about how she should have the same rights as he does, and he should have the same rights as she does. Now some people might read the second definition about how it is focusing on women's rights and say "Aha! It's not about equality, it's about women!" Let's stop for a second, we're all educated people here, with at least some knowledge of the past hundred years. If one group were to need a bit of focus to make everyone equal, wouldn't it be the almost universally worst off women? That's not to say that we should stripping rights away from men and giving them to women, it means that we should focus our efforts on getting aid and representation for the group that needs it most.

Feminism has become something of a buzz word in pop culture today and everyone seems to have an opinion on it. It's great that we as a culture are finally beginning to change and slowly but surely all groups are beginning to get the equality they've been striving for. Unfortunately, with that rise in popularity came the creation of the Feminazi.

Feminazis are some of the worst people around since they commandeer the name of a genuine struggle and use it to further their own ambitions. Suddenly any perceived slight, be they real or imagined, is an insult to feminism. Every activity they pursue, no matter how little it has to do with it, bears the stamp of feminism. These people no longer strive for equality of sexes, they instead seek to show their superiority over the opposite sex. Not only do these people insult the cause through their actions, they deter possible supporters who do not want to be associated with such people. I myself have struggled with the title "Feminist" because of run ins with Feminazis. It wasn't until I read a rather intense declaration from one of my favourite actors, Marc Ruffalo that I began to research the subject and finally embrace the title.

In short, feminism is a beautiful thing that every good level headed person should be supporting. It's a fight where the loudest voices are often the worst examples but it is a fight for equality that should have been won long ago.

Blastoise Naming Survey

I'm trying something new here. A survey to name my newest battle ready pokemon: Blastoise!

Blastoise has always been one of my favourite pokemon. It was my starter back in the day when I was playing Pokemon Blue Version and has always had a place in my heart ever since.

I was recently interviewed about the game League of Legends (I hope to share that interview here once it is made public) and one of the topics we touched on was my choice of characters. During the interview I realized that I enjoy playing characters that I identify with, or would theoretically look up to. In this case I was thinking of the character Braum, a manly man who loves to get in the way and protect his allies.

After this I noticed that I did this in almost every single game I played! I love playing as, or making use of the biggest, toughest, manliest characters around! Which brings us back to Blastoise. Blastoise with it's tough shell armour and double cannon arsenal is exactly what I love in a character.

The only problem is… I have no idea what to nickname it!

Please do me a favour and click this link to visit a survey I've posted with a few suggested names. Or feel free to suggest your own!


Thanks for all your help!
Stay awesome guys!

Plastic Nee-San

Have you ever heard of an anime miniseries before?

I hadn't until I heard about Plastic Nee-San.

The show is very silly and random and pretty darn entertaining. It's about three girls who are in the club where they build models like trains and planes and such. Since each episode is only a few minutes long there's no real story and it's all about the humour. Fearsum4sum does a good job of explaining it in his video here.

The entire series is only about a half an hour long so if you have some time to kill feel free to check it out!

Here is the entire anime summed up in one image.