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Weekly post about what I did to get in shape!

Shape Up! – Week 69

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 69 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

This week I wanted to talk about calories.  First off, did you know that you can order Pizza Hut from the Xbox 360.  Pizza Hut has partnered with Microsoft to launch an app that lets video game players place Pizza Hut orders via Xbox Live.  The Create Your Pizza App is geared toward gamers who are glued to the couch and rarely put down their game controllers.  You can even use the Kinect movements to order pizza.  Using my Jay Leno voice, America is getting so fat you don’t have to leave the couch to order pizza.

Several restaurants including McDonald’s are now posting their calorie counts on their menu boards.  For me, most of the time, I just want to have a burger or chicken nuggets no matter what the calories are.  I am sure most people do the same thing like I do.  Every once in a while, I do take a closer look at the menu board and see the calorie counts.  Face it, when you go to a fast food restaurant, you are not expecting to eat healthy.  You go to McDonald’s for a burger and their fries.  You go to KFC for their fried chicken.  You go to Wendy’s for their burgers and the Frosty.  Most people don’t go to a fast food joint to eat healthy.

Most people who wants to eat healthy at a fast food joint will probably go to a Subway.  And yes, I do love going to Subway or Quizno’s.  More often, you will see me at these places then at a McDonald’s.  I do believe if the burger fast food places wants to see more business they need to introduce better foods that are healthy.  Those generic salads just don’t cut it!  Wendy’s has chili and baked potato’s that are a very good alternative to their french fries.  And McDonald’s has real fruit smoothies!  There are healthy things at a fast food joint other than salads.  You just have to look!

The New York Times did a very interesting video showing you the menu calorie counts and the actual calorie counts after testing was done.  Most of the time, you are being lied too!

I also wanted to remind you that Friday May 17th is Food Revolution Day.  The day was started by Jamie Oliver and it’s a global day of action for people to make a stand for good food and essential cooking skills.  It’s a chance for people to come together within their homes, schools, workplaces and communities to cook and share their kitchen skills, food knowledge and resources.  Food Revolution Day aims to raise awareness about the importance of good food and better food education for everyone by focusing on three simple actions – cook it, share it, live it.  Learn more about Food Revolution Day at: http://www.foodrevolutionday.com/

This is what I ate last week:

Saturday: Hotpockets, Sweet Tea.

Sunday: Grilled Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Sweet Tea.

Monday: Grilled Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Sweet Tea.

Tuesday: Pizza, Sweet Tea.

Wednesday: Pizza Grilled Cheese, Oven Fries, Sweet Tea.

Thursday: Grilled Chicken, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Friday: Pizza Grilled Cheese, Chips, Sweet Tea.

Have a great week everyone!

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Shape Up! – Week 68

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 68 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

Saturday was such a fun day!  Since it rained all day in Anniston, I went over to Birmingham for some events!  First, I went to the Free Comic Book Day event at Kingdom Comics.  Many people came and the line was very long!  Also, many costumed characters were out.  Seeing many families and kids coming out was special.  The geek and nerd culture has exploded thanks to movies, TV shows, comics, animated shows, and the overall word of mouth about geeks and nerds.  My second event was Celebrate Hoover Day at Spain Park High School.  I got some apple pie and ice cream and took lots of photos and videos.  Everyone had a good time!  I probably did a few miles of walking on Saturday.

Now I really want to talk about this.  Live Below the Line is a challenge for everyday people to live on the equivalent of the extreme poverty line for five days.  It is an initiative of The Global Poverty Project, whose mission is to increase the number and effectiveness of people taking action against extreme poverty.   Some people have taken the challenge and learned what it’s like to live on $1.50 a day.  Last week, some anchors from WHNT-TV took the challenge and wrote about it.  It’s a very interesting read!

http://whnt.com/2013/04/29/special-report-below-the-poverty-line/

There are places around the world where people live in extreme poverty.  And you know what, there are people here in America that lives in extreme poverty!  Some adults have been out of work for such a long time and no one will give them a chance to work.  So they might live in horrible living conditions or be homeless.  These people also don’t eat too much at all.  Yes, there are people in America who are food   insecure and might only eat one meal a day.  If these people have kids, they starve as well.  Their only meal might be the school lunch and on weekends or holidays, these kids might not eat anything.

Most people get food stamps or SNAP benefits to help them.  But these benefits only go so far.  Yes, I have been unemployed for 22 months now and I am on food stamps.  I get $200 a month to help with food.  This means on most days I only eat one meal a day during dinner.  Most days I also include a snack like a recipe I made or some breakfast.  I have lived like this for six months now.  When I go out to cover events with pictures and photos, I often do it with an empty stomach.

When you hardly eat anything, you often end up with less energy and you can’t do much or you will get tired.  Most days as I sit here in the apartment, I feel tired and want to sleep.  That’s what happens when you only eat one meal a day.  Some days I only feel like sleeping all day long because my energy is almost zero.  If I did not get food stamps, I would only imagine how things would be.  I would most likely end up going through garbage cans for food.  I encourage all people to do the Live Below the Line challenge and live on $1.50 a day for five days.  You will come out of it as a better person.  In this film titled Living on One Dollar, several students lived in Guatemala during the Summer and lived on one dollar a day.  You need to watch this film!

Learn more about Live Below the Line at: https://www.livebelowtheline.com/us

Learn more about the The Global Poverty Project at: http://livingonone.org/

This is what I ate last week:

Saturday: Pizza, Sweet Tea.

Sunday: Burger, Fries, Sweet Tea.

Monday: Burger, Fries, Sweet Tea.

Tuesday: Pork Chops, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Wednesday: Pork Chops, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Thursday: Fish and Chips, Sweet Tea, Chocolate Cupcakes.

Friday: Fish and Chips, Sweet Tea, ChocolateCupcakes.

Have a great week everyone!

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Shape Up! – Week 67

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 67 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

This is making the news in Alabama and I thought this would be a great time to talk about this.  Last week, the Anniston City Council passed a tougher smoking ban.  The original smoking ban still allowed bars to have smoking.  But the new ordinance bans all indoor smoking in public buildings and restaurants!  I think this is a major step forward for Anniston and for the health of people everywhere.  Not too long ago, the two hospitals in Anniston banned smoking on their entire campus.  This meant no one could smoke on the hospital property.  Some people whined online saying they should have a right to smoke anywhere they want.  And now with the city passing a tougher smoking ban, some people are again whining online saying there rights are being taken away and its one step closer in becoming a government nanny state.

Back in the 1960′s, smoking was very hip.  You saw many people smoking and you also saw many commercials and advertising about cigarettes.  Many stars on TV and in the movies were lighting up.  Basically smoking was hot and very hip.  Soon, doctors and health officials starting to come out with warnings about the effects of smoking.  And the numbers of people smoking have dropped ever since.  When I was a kid, my father was an avid smoker.  He would smoke multiple times a day and here’s the worst part.  Whenever we were in a car, he would light up and only crack the car window slightly.  Yes, I had to smell a lot of cigarette smoke.   Here’s a video showing you what happens to your body when you smoke.

Today, I can’t stand any cigarette smoke.  I do not go to places where smoking is allowed. Whenever I am in public areas like festivals or concerts, I will walk away from people who light up.  I can not stand the smell of cigarette smoke.  Basically, I do not want to be around any cigarette smoke at all.  I support cities that passes smoking bans, and I even think businesses will do better with smoking bans.  Who wants to go to a bar or business and smell all of that smoke?  I wish all cities and businesses would ban indoor smoking at public places.  It would be good for everybody.  And before someone says this, I support the rights of each individual person and you do have a right to smoke in your own home.  Government is not going to ban people from smoking at their own homes.

Need help in quitting your smoking habit, go to: http://www.smokefree.gov/  Here’s a video showing you what happens to your body after you quit smoking.

As for me in the last week, just the usual walking and eating one meal a day.  I am getting close to my second anniversary of being fired from my last job.  Instead of sitting around and doing nothing, I have written the Geek Alabama blog while job searching.  Stay tuned, I am going to announce something soon so I can move the Geek Alabama blog to the next level!

This is what I ate last week:

Saturday: Hotpockets, Sweet Tea.

Sunday: Pork Chops, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Monday: Pork Chops, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Tuesday: Party Pizza, Chips, Sweet Tea.

Wednesday: Party Pizza, Chips, Sweet Tea.

Thursday: BBQ Pork, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea, Cookies and Cream Cupcakes.

Friday: Hotpockets, Sweet Tea, Cookies and Cream Cupcakes.

Have a great week everyone!

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Shape Up! – Week 66

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 66 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

What an interesting weekend!  This area had the Noble Street Festival and the Cheaha Challenge!  I took a lot of photos and videos from the weekend!  That meant I did a lot of walking.  Usually I wear flip-flops when I do events, but this weekend I put on my tennis shoes because I did a lot of walking!  I probably did around 3-4 miles of walking over the weekend.  By the end of Sunday, I was very tired and went to sleep quickly.  I slept around 10 hours Sunday night into Monday morning.  By the way, if you want to see the posts I did, click the links!

http://geekalabama.com/2013/04/21/noble-street-festival-2013-edition

http://geekalabama.com/2013/04/22/cheaha-challenge-2013-edition

This week, many people are celebrating Earth Week!  Monday was Earth Day, and many people starts to think about ways to make the Earth a better place.  One of the best things anyone can do is to recycle.  For example, I keep several water bottles filled with water in the fridge.  Buying bottles of bottled water is not good for the planet!  Also, try walking or riding a bike instead of driving a car.  Where I live, it’s almost not practical to walk or ride a bike because I live right next to a 5-lane busy roadway.  Sometimes I like to go out to the Talladega National Forest and just enjoy the scenery.  This video showing a life in the forest for one year is perfect!

Another way to be greener for Earth Day is to use less waste.  And if you go out to eat, waste happens often!  One fast-food chain in Brazil actually used edible packaging that invites consumers to bite into the burgers without having to unwrap them.  Fast-food chain Bob’s is the country’s first fast food chain, having been established in 1952 by American-Brazilian tennis champion Robert Falkenburg.  Their edible packaging could be the wave of the future for all food packaging!  Could you imagine eating a burger from McDonald’s without unwrapping?

I wanted to wrap up this post with something cute and that would put a smile on your face!  The last week has been rough with bombings and bad news all over the place.  This video should make you smile!

This is what I ate last week:

Saturday: Hot Dogs, Hotpockets, Diet Coke.

Sunday: Chicken Breast, Brown Rice, Diet Coke.

Monday: BBQ Sandwiches, Chips, Diet Coke.

Tuesday: BBQ Sandwiches, Chips, Sweet Tea, Rainbow Cupcakes.

Wednesday: Fish, Mashed Potatoes, Sweet Tea, Rainbow Cupcakes.

Thursday: Fish, Mashed Potatoes, Sweet Tea, Rainbow Cupcakes.

Friday: Pizza, Sweet Tea.

Have a great week everyone!

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Shape Up! – Week 65

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 65 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

Let’s admit it, whenever people thinks about obesity and being overweight, most people tends to turn to people in the south like Alabama and Mississippi.  For years now, we have seen story after story saying Mississippi and Alabama are the two fattest states in the country.  Yes, there are people down who are obese or overweight.  And we tend to love foods that are fried or are very sweet.  UAB did a study and the bad publicly about Mississippi and Alabama being the fattest states just might not be true!

UAB’s researchers did a study and they found that people living in the Midwest states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa and Missouri had a higher obesity rate than people living in the southeast including Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and other states.  The mid-western states had a obesity rate of 41% compared to the southeastern states that had a obesity rate of 31%!  31% is still not good but at least the south is not the worst in something.  So why did people get the reputation that people

living in the south are fat and obese.  Simple, because people in the south have good matters and are truthful!

I am not going to say this is a huge victory for people in the south.  I mean, 31% obesity is still a very high number!  This study really shows the overall picture of obesity in America.  And it’s not just a problem with people in the south or people in poverty.  The entire country has a major problem with obesity.  And it’s going to take a lot of work to reverse the obesity trends in America.  People needs to start eating healthier and exercising more.  Sometimes being overweight can be caused by genetics.  But most of the time, being overweight is caused by someone not taking care of their own bodies.  You can view this study at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/oby.20451/abstract

So, what did I do in the last week?  Since I have been unemployed for 22 months now, I have been only eating one meal a day with a small snack.  And my only exercising has involved some walking.  I don’t have the money to get a personal trainer or join a gym.  I wish I did, because my weight loss has been stuck in neutral.  Over the last few weeks I have not noticed any major weight loss or gain.  So until I can get some money, my weight loss journey is stuck.  If someone would pay me, things would change!

By the way, if you not seen the future plans I want to make for Geek Alabama, click the link! http://geekalabama.com/2013/04/09/geek-alabamas-future-plans/

This is what I ate last week:

Saturday: Popcorn, Pizza, Sweet Tea.

Sunday: Popcorn, Pork Chops, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea

Monday: Popcorn, Chicken Breasts, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Tuesday: Popcorn, Pork Chops, Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Wednesday: Apple Crisp, Ham Sandwiches, Chips, Sweet Tea.

Thursday: Apple Crisp, Ham Sandwiches, Chips, Sweet Tea.

Friday: Apple Crisp, Pizza, Sweet Tea.

Have a great week everyone!

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Shape Up! – Week 64

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 64 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

Before I get started, I made a new banner that is in use on the Geek Alabama social media sites on Facebook, Twitter, Google +, and on the new YouTube channel!  Yes, I am creating a new YouTube channel to post stuff from the blog.  I am still keeping my own YouTube channel for personal stuff!  Enjoy the new banner, I will leave it up on the blog for a few days!

cropped-picture1vvvvvv.png

I am also going through a bit of changes here on the Geek Alabama blog!  First off, I am now a member of the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce.  Now, I am about to go through an effort to expand this blog and make this website a leader not only in Alabama, but in the southeast, and the country!  I am also applying to the Advantage Capital Enterprise System, come back to read the Sunday Discussion post to read my plans and to watch my special video!

I know many of you saw this story where an airline is now weighing all passengers and are basing ticket prices on the weight of each person.  Samoa Air is now pricing its international flights based on the weight of its passengers and their bags.  Depending on the flight, each kilogram (2.2 pounds) costs 93 cents to $1.06.

Chris Langton, who is the airline’s chief executive, said ”planes are run by weight and not by seat, and travelers should be educated on this important issue.  The plane can only carry a certain amount of weight and that weight needs to be paid.  There is no other way.”  The question many people over here are asking is, are the airlines in America going to start charging prices based on weight as well?

Seriously, it would not surprise me to see a model like this happen in the future.  It costs more for airlines to fly with extra weight instead of less weight.  That’s how physics work.  The cost for jet fuel is through the roof and airlines are trying to save every dollar they can!  So if they decided to move to a model where passengers pay based on their weight, the airlines would break even or even make a profit.  I know some people hates seeing something like this and even thinks this is discrimination   But us Americans have a huge problem with taking care of ourselves.

Our health care costs are through the roof and many Americans continue to eat unhealthy foods and continue to do little to no exercise.  If these trends don’t change soon, our health care system will go bankrupt because many people need health care because they can’t do the right things like eating right and exercising.  Sounds crazy, right?  If we want to lower health care costs in this country, we need to take better care of ourselves.  Is that really hard to do?  Over the last week, I only ate one meal a day, mostly Easter leftovers.  And I did some walking, hopefully something will change soon!

This is what I ate last week:

Saturday: Hotpockets, Sweet Tea.

Sunday: Easter Dinner (Ham, Turkey, Fixings, Pie), Sweet Tea

Monday: Easter Leftovers, Sweet Tea.

Tuesday: Easter Leftovers, Sweet Tea.

Wednesday: Easter Leftovers, Sweet Tea.

Thursday: Tacos, Spanish Rice, Sweet Tea.

Friday: Pizza, Sweet Tea.

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Shape Up! – Week 63

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 63 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

Ah!  Spring is here!  And that means warmer weather, going outside more, and longer days!  Since I have been unemployed for 22 months now.  I have grown tired of doing nothing but walking and eating one meal a day.  The results have been little!  So starting today, I am going back to eating anything I want!  I am going to enjoy eating a lot of pies that are very high in calories!

stuff 129

To make a piece of pie even more calorie laden, I decided to add frosting!

stuff 130

Boy this was delicious!

stuff 131

I also went to several Easter egg hunts over the weekend and collected some candy filled Easter eggs.  I am going to enjoy these for a long time!

stuff 132

Ah!  It feels good eating anything you want.  Sometimes the large pizza, or large bucket of chicken, quart of ice cream, or a full bag of french fries is very satisfying!  Now excuse me as I indulge in a large gallon of ice cream!

This is what I ate last week:

Saturday: BBQ Ribs, Fries, Soda

Sunday: 20 Chicken Fingers, Fries, Soda

Monday: Three Large Bacon Cheesburgers, Fries, Soda

Tuesday: 50 Chicken Wings, Fries, Soda

Wednesday: Two Large Steaks, Potato, Soda

Thursday: 8-Piece Bucket of Chicken, Fries, Soda

Friday: Large Pizza, Soda

Enjoy your week everyone!  And by the way, April Fools!  Do you think I would go back to my old ways!

april_fools_day_02

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Shape Up! – Week 62

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 62 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

The news about sugary drinks has not been good in the last several weeks.  According to  researchers from the American Heart Association and the Harvard School of Public Health.  Sugar-sweetened beverages contributes to more than 180,000 obesity-related deaths worldwide each year.  This means about one in every 100 deaths from obesity-related diseases is caused by drinking sugary beverages.  The United States had the third highest amount of deaths caused from sugary drinks.  And Mexico had the highest death rates in the world caused by sugary drinks.

I believe most people have no clue how much sugar they are really consuming when they drink a sugary drink.  For example; the American Heart Association recommends a limit of added sugar to no more than 100 calories a day for women and 150 for men.  But the average 12-ounce regular soda contains the equivalent of 10 teaspoons of sugar and has about 140 calories.  The average American consumes around 80 pounds of sugar each year.  Don’t you think that’s too much?  Here are the average amounts of sugar in drinks from the Rhode Island Medical Society.

how much sugar

I have found some more interesting facts from the website http://fatsmack.org/.  These facts show we have a problem of drinking too many sugary drinks.

  • One, 20-oz bottle of regular soda has about 16 teaspoons of sugar.
  • Teens consume twice as much soda as they do milk.
  • On an average day, 80% of youth consume a sugary drink.
  • A single, 20-ounce bottle of regular soda has about 16 teaspoons of sugar.
  • The average person consumes almost 100 pounds of sugar a year, with the single biggest source being sodas.
  • The American Heart Association recommends that the maximum daily intake of added sugars be no more than 4.5 teaspoons for teens aged 12-19.
  • Did you know, health costs of obesity in the United States are $147 billion annually? That’s like buying everyone in the U.S. an iPad 2.

No doubt we are drinking too much sugary drinks.  Drinking nothing but water all the time does get boring after a while.  But sugary drinks could be healthier.  Most everything you buy processed has high-fructose corn syrup.  You would be shocked how many products have this.  High-fructose corn syrup is highly industrialized and has been shown to cause diabetes, obesity, and other nasty diseases.  I wish foods would use other sweeteners like honey, agave syrup, raw sugar, molasses, and other natural sweeteners.

One huge tip I give to everyone!  When you go grocery shopping, READ the ingredient labels!  If you see anything with high-fructose corn syrup or any other ingredients you can not pronounce, put it back on the shelf.  We need to be getting back to cooking in the kitchen instead of relying on processed foods.  When I brew my own sweet tea, I use real sugar.  I try to limit how many chemicals in foods I put in my body.  And this is something we all need to be doing!  Usage of high-fructose corn syrup has gone down in the last few years.  Let’s hope that continues!

The last week, I have walked and eaten one meal a day.  Being out of work for 21 months sucks!  Here’s what I ate in the last week.

Saturday: Pizza, Sweet Tea.

Sunday: Steak and Baked Potato, Sweet Tea.

Monday: Grilled Chicken and Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Tuesday:  Fajitas and Spanish Rice, Sweet Tea.

Wednesday: Bratwursts and Chips, Sweet Tea.

Thursday: Grilled Chicken and Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Friday: Burgers and Fries, Sweet Tea.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

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Shape Up! – Weeks 60-61

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is weeks 60-61 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

After taking a week off, Shape Up is back!  I wanted to talk about something the Mississippi Legislature just passed.  The Anti-Bloomberg Bill would prevent Mississippi counties, districts, and towns from banning food based on its nutritional information.  It would also stop them from enacting rules that would cap portion sizes.  The law would also ban calorie counts on menus.

Mississippi state Sen. Tony Smith, the bill’s author and a restaurant owner says the bill will save countless numbers of small businesses from going belly up.  Smith believes there’s enough regulation already and said ”If the market demands that I serve a more healthy food, I’ll do that to meet to the market demand,” he said. “But … why should I risk my capital, my hard work, my efforts that I’ve put in to build a restaurant on the thinking of what a government official thinks?”  Smith even said America has become too much of “a nanny nation’’ trying to pass too many unnecessary regulations.  And he also wonders when it will stop.  No wonder why Mississippi is often looked down all the time!

Congratulations Mississippi Legislature!  You just made your state an even bigger laughing stock!  Mississippi has the highest obesity rates in the country with 34.9% of the state’s adult population obese in 2011.  I guess the legislature passed this in the best hearts of its people.  The legislature wants to keep its citizens obese and stupid.  Doing things like posting calorie counts on menus would actually improve the health of people and lower health care costs.  But no, the leaders in the legislature are more worried about profits.  And that is just sad!  Mississippi is also trying to pass a bill to ban cities from opposing a minimum wage, this is getting crazy!

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/02/27/1644821/mississippi-republicans-would-prohibit-towns-from-establishing-a-minimum-wage/?mobile=nc

The sad thing about all of this, I can easily see the Alabama Legislature passing something like what Mississippi passed.  Why are states like Mississippi and Alabama passing these crazy laws when most Americans actually support laws to improve public health.  The Harvard School of Public Health recently polled 1,187 adults on a slew of public health regulations that aim to do everything from reduce obesity to cutting smoking rates.

A number of the policies in the survey got widespread support. Seventy-five percent supported barring food stamps from being used on sugary beverages.  The same number liked the idea of requiring chain restaurants to reduce their sodium contents.  Eighty-percent liked required posting of calorie labels.  One other thing, how about Mississippi and Alabama remove the sales tax on groceries?  This hurts the poor and often forces them to buy unhealthy and processed foods.  Is it that hard to do?

As for what I did, just a lot of walking and eating one meal a day.  One good thing is I am now a chamber member with the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce.  Someone sponsored me!  Hopefully this leads to income!

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Here’s is what I ate last week!

Saturday: Hotpockets, Sweet Tea.

Sunday: Pork Chops and Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Monday: Chicken Sandwiches and Chips, Sweet Tea.

Tuesday:  Pork Chops and Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Wednesday: Chicken Sandwiches and Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Thursday: Chicken Tenders and Fries, Sweet Tea.

Friday: Pizza, Sweet Tea.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

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Shape Up! – Week 59

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Geek Alabama Shape Up!

This is week 59 in my series of Shape Up!  The weekly post on what I did over the last week in my quest to getting healthier.

You would think America would not have a hunger problem.  But sadly; it does!  Fifty million people in the U.S.—one in four children—don’t know where their next meal is coming from.  Hunger poses serious economic, social and cultural implications for our nation, and that it could be solved once and for all, if the American public decides — as they have in the past — that making healthy food available and affordable is in the best interest of us all.  This is the plot for A Place At The Table.

Hunger is mostly due to income.  Here in Alabama, a full sales tax is charged on groceries.  Along with Mississippi, Alabama is only one of two states that does not offer any offset, rebate, or break on sales tax on food and groceries.  Several legislators have offered a bill to remove the sales tax on groceries, but as you know, the Alabama Legislature can be crazy at times!  So I do not see any relief in the sales tax anytime soon.    You can learn more about the Alabama Food Tax Bill at: http://www.alabamafoodtax.com.

One solution to solve hunger has been the SNAP program, or Food Stamps.  Since I have been unemployed for 21 months now, I have been on Food Stamps for the last few months.  I get $200 a month for food purchases.  This does not go a long way at all!  I only eat one meal a day and at times a snack.  When I cover an event I will often do it on an empty stomach.  I care about getting the best pictures and videos of events to put on Geek Alabama.  So if that means I work while hungry, so be it!

Other families often face this problem, they make enough income so they can’t qualify for Food Stamps.  How can a family of 4 survive on an income of $28,000 a year?  Simple, they can’t!  These children often learns on an empty stomach in school and lunch can be the only meal they get during the day.  During the weekends, they often go hungry.   Some schools do programs where they send home food to less fortunate kids during the weekends.  I am going to say this, we have got to do a better job feeding the hungry!

The film A Place At The Table illustrates the need for fair pay, a living wage, and funding for programs like SNAP.  If our country adopted these models, they believe, as do many others, that as pervasive as hunger is, it’s still a solvable issue—one that could be remedied within years, not lifetimes.  I agree that the Food Stamp program needs to kick out the people abusing it.  Yes, I have seen some people abusing the program before.  And  we have got to do a better job paying a fair wage for workers.  This is why I support a raise in the minimum wage to $9 an hour.  Hunger in America has got to go!

To learn more about A Place At The Table go to: www.takepart.com/place-at-the-table.

Along with some walking, here’s is what I ate last week!

Saturday: Pizza, Sweet Tea.

Sunday: Chicken Breast and Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Monday: Hotpockets, Sweet Tea.

Tuesday:  Pork Chops and Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Wednesday: Burger and Fries, Sweet Tea.

Thursday: Pork Chops and Brown Rice, Sweet Tea.

Friday: Burger and Fries, Sweet Tea.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

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