The Expecting Book Hunter

One of these is not like the other...

Two weeks ago, Jyg announced to me that she might be pregnant. Three tests later - one home pregnancy, another walk in clinic and a final test with an actual doctor present - we now know that it's not just a possibility anymore. So in all good book hunter, I set off to find the books of guidance and wound only  buying one helpful book, a baby name book - which we don't need because we had names picked out since the beginning - a book whose title I didn't read real well when I dropped it into my Amazon shopping cart and a book that has nothing to do at all with the subject of child care. 

I already cracked open Eating Well When You're Expecting by Heidi Murkoff with Sharon Mazel because - not to belittle Jyg's culinary skills - I'm the cook in this family. Besides, it might get me to eat healthy as well if I'm the one responsible for the meals. I do plan on purchasing What to Expect When You're Expecting if Jyg's sister doesn't already have a copy to lend us. Although, several men on Amazon have already stated letting your loved one read that book might be disastrous on our psyche. They suggested reading the Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy. I thought I was purchasing the male equivalent to What to Expect When You're Expecting - What To Expect When Your Spouse Is Expecting - when I picked up What to Expect When You're Wife is Expanding, but...well, the title alone tells you my fault.

As usual, I also had a book on queue for my would-be budding writing career - current situations, however, might put that on hold indefinitely). Just to keep me motivated, I picked up The Idea Writers by Teressa Iezzi.  A couple of people have urged me in this direction in the past, so I finally sucked up whatever pride I had and decided to look into it. As for the Cool Names for Babies book, well, that's also for my writing. A writer can only use a certain name a number of times before people get suspicious, you know.

What does all this news mean for the book hunter? Well, at the moment it's hard to tell. I do have over five hundred books in my personal library, plus whatever I have on my Kindle. So for the moment, hunting might be a luxury I can no longer afford. But reviews, my friends. Those are always free. Until next time, keep on huntin'.

New Year, New You

It seems like every year, we all make some resolution of toning or shaping up. After all the holiday gluttony, I can see why. And let me tell you now, I'm far from being immune - though, I tend to make resolutions every three months until I collapse from exhaustion (have you tried partaking in a turkey eating contest with my family?). Well, this year is different from the last. I'm going to learn how to self motivate and keep up with my exercises and possible diet. 

Now diets have gotten a bad rap from several mediums. A lot of people say they don't work and for the most part, these people are right. The diets they're talking about are fad diets, which rarely work at all - think Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. Real dieters will tell you, however, it's not so much the portions you eat a day, but what those portions are made up of. 

Here are a few diet books that I've personally tried and seen results:

1. The Abs Diet - Now in a new edition, David Zinczenko - the editor-in-chief of Men's Health - combines common sense diet knowledge, a great exercise regimen and meal plans to help you get back into shape. I can't tell you much about what the new edition contains, but the older edition did help me shed off extra pounds - up until I stopped, anyway. There's a supplemental cookbook and a recipe book that you can purchase, a women's version of the diet, as well as, workout DVDs (for the ladies) if that's your fancy.  
2. Also from the editors of Men's Health comes The Belly Off! Diet - written along with Jeff Csatari. Not to be confused with Flat Belly Diet, Belly Off! started off as an idea online. It compiles true results stories of people online, combines techniques used by several online users and created this great diet and exercise plan. Like The Abs Diet, Belly Off! includes an exercise section that'll aid you to complete your weight-loss goal. It also includes recipes - so you don't have to go off and buy another book - and a grocery list. 
3. Now there's nothing more common sense than the Eat This, Not That series - also from Men's Health (I'm sensing a pattern here). Because there are several, the most important guides are Supermarket Survival Guide and the Restaurant Survival Guide. If you have kids who are less than active, you might want to think about getting the for Kids! edition.
4. Because the time to mold your beach body is now, rather than the week before Spring Break, your best bet is to check out P90X. I warn you - as I have found out for myself - these are intense workouts - even the yoga pretty much crippled me. It's not for the faint of heart or those easily discouraged. If you do take this route, I suggest you start out with a lighter workout first. That way it's not too much of a shock when you step into it. Check more info either via Amazon or the Beachbody website. The package includes a nutrition guide, an exercise planner and 13 DVDs. It's pricey, so it's not something you want to buy unless you're determined. 

Setting all this aside, if you want to lose weight without spending money, the best laid plans are ones that make sense. Drop the fatty foods you know are bad for you. Stop eating out as much, and choose healthier foods if you wind up at a restaurant. When preparing your own meals, choose lean cut meats and chickens, fish containing Omega-3. Make sure to have plenty of veggies - try the thirds idea, where you divide your plate into three sections, dedicating two-thirds to veggies and carbs (not too much of the latter if you're not openly active). Take walks and bike rides. But most importantly, find a partner who is motivated if you don't happen to be - they'll motivate you if it kills you. And don't drop your healthy choices once you're at the achieved goal. Otherwise, you'll just slump back into bad habits. Remember, three healthy meals a day tagged along with three healthy snacks in between. Trade your potato chips for carrots and your candy for nuts. You can do this.

Health & Fitness

Got my copy of The Belly Off! Diet by Jeff Csataris and the editors of Men's Health in the mail today and hopefully the book would do more than just sit on my shelf, looking pretty. Because let's face it, a large amount of us who read for leisure aren't the most athletic people in the world. And this isn't the first time I've picked up a book brought to us by Men's Health. There was The Abs Diet that I purchased at Hastings some years back that sound and felt like a great idea, but in the end was thrown in the pile of failed attempts to lose some pounds. 

But I wasn't looking for a set of perfect abs, I just wanted to feel better about myself. This summer alone I've managed to lose ten pounds working at the stadium, which would be a great feat had I not gained them back in the end. 

Maybe The Belly Off! Diet is for me. Just in case I feel like it's pointless, I'm going to do my best to keep up with a blog (which I'll make later) to track my progress. 

During the process of typing up this blog, my aunt called and asked if she could use the microwave. She was reheating shrimp kabobs that she made yesterday. I'm now eating three. Oh boy, this is going to be a tough one. Until next time, keep on huntin'.

It was an offer I just couldn't refuse

I just might be depressed because I've been doing a lot of e-shopping lately. Mostly on eBay and Amazon. And my book e-hunting led me to shopping eBay one night, leading me to find a four-book lot of a Mario Puzo collection. It included The Godfather, The Last Don, The Family and Omerta. The price was $3.99 plus $4.39 shipping, a total price of $8.38. 

Other recent purchases include Beauty's Release and the collection Nightmares & Dreamscapes (the miniseries, not the book, which I own already) from eBay, plus purchases from Amazon include Let the Right One In, Cities of the Interior and The Belly Off! Diet, which will probably sit on my shelf, looking pretty. 

Too Many Books

Is there really such a thing as too many books? I didn't think so. It started with me looking through Half.com for a copy of The New New Journalism, which I found for only $0.75 plus shipping, so it came to be a little over $4.

I continued my search the rest of Arthur C. Clarke's Odyssey series, but no luck at Hastings or anywhere else for that matter. I even attempted Barnes & Noble, but nada - though they had another copy of a book by him - as did Hastings - however, not the books I am looking for. Today, I purchased them for $8 for both of them, used.

Clarke's writing has been able to do something most science fiction author's have failed - keep me interested. I don't want to stick my literary nose up in the sky, but let's face it: College killed the genre for me. The only other writer was Heinlein, though I've only been able to read his Stranger in a Strange Land.

Also purchased, but not hunted for, was Chuch Palahniuk's novel, Choke. Hastings had several of his novels on their used shelves, though I picked this one for unknown reasons. It was one part influence by Tumblr and one part influence by Esmer, a friend of mine and Jyg's. I fear that the book will not be a hit with me because of the author's teenage fan base, though I've been wrong before.

Another hunt also ended yesterday. I finally laid my hands upon a copy of Tim O'Brien's war classic, The Things They Carried. Hastings had it listed at value price, paying only $10 rather than the $15. Not a big deal, I know, but it was cheaper and I got to keep the five for another hunt - I can't believe how unbelievably cheap that makes me sound.

So what's the next hunt? I'm searching for a used copy/value priced edition of Belly Off! Diet.

In other news: I purchased the Watchmen: Director's Cut DVD. While several comic nerds and impatient nonthinkers were displeased with the movie, I enjoyed it. I'll be first to admit that I was nearly pissing my pants to watch the Director's Cut because I anticipated so much from the movie. Did I care it was going to exceed three hours - crap no! However, I was disappointed when I tore off the plastic wrapping, popped open the DVD case to see an ad for The Watchmen Ultimate Collector's Edition due in December of this year. The set contains five discs, The Director's Cut with Tales of the Black Freighter woven in, new commentary by Dave Gibbons and director Zack Synder, over two hours bonus content, which includes Hollis Mason's Tell All, Under the Hood and the complete Watchmen Motion Comics! I know, it's a huge fuck you, courtesy of Warner and Paramount.