Oh, Exercise

In the end of June, we got back into the Couch-to-5k plan that we had started earlier this year before we lost a family member and began planning the wedding. We have made it through 4 whole weeks so far and I’m very pleased with the progress.

We’ve definitely come a long way and I would highly recommend the program to anyone who thinks they can’t run or hates running. I hated running when I started because it seemed so impossible. The couch-to-5k plan shifts the focus from distance to time.

We also have started to integrate strength training exercise on some of our off days from running. Some days we do circuits of workouts with dumbells, while other times we opt for yoga.

The “D” word

Though we’re not following a specific diet plan, we’re watching our food intake by counting calories. We started out using a web app called Hot Cal, but have since discovered MyFitnessPal which seems even better. I have to say, counting calories is not my thing. I hate counting calories and having to figure out exactly what is in every single thing I ingest. Thankfully, Jason doesn’t seem to mind and has been faithfully calculating our meals. It has been really eye opening to see the numbers and how having a sedentary job makes losing weight even more difficult.

The positive thing we’ve discovered is that you can eat pretty much whatever you want a couple times a week. It’s really all about balancing it out with lighter meals and/or exercise.

New Job

To go along with all the changes in our personal lives, I’ve made a change in my professional life as well. I have accepted a position with the Center for Educational Networking, which is where Jason currently works as a Web/Multimedia Specialist. Everyone we’ve told so far has been left aghast when we explain we’ll be working pretty closely together, but I’m actually not too concerned. We have always made a good team and I think we’re both professional enough to make it work.

It has been a rough year, and we’re excited to start this new chapter in our lives.

We had never seen anything like it, and immediately decided it was the set we wanted. The perfect combination of form and function, it was very pricey. We were already engaged at the time though so we didn’t rule it out completely. We spend a lot of time in the kitchen, so a great set of knives would be well worth it–we literally only have ONE good knife right now. Wüsthof knives are also the kind that my favorite cook Ina Garten uses, so suffice it to say they made it to the top of the must-have list.

When it came time to (begrudgingly) start some wedding registries, I was excited to find that the set was available at Bed Bath and Beyond. I added the set to our registry and and told my family it was the only thing we really wanted. We would even pitch in and pay part of the cost if it came down to that. Yes, we wanted the knives that badly.

Part 1: Initial Letdown

So about a month ago, at a surprise bridal shower in Ohio, we were given the knife set of our dreams! We opened it up as soon as we got back to Michigan, but were disappointed to find that the knife block itself was not the dark wood we liked so much. Instead it was a light oak color that really just seemed “blah” with the knives. Since the set was so expensive, I called Bed Bath & Beyond to see what the deal was, since the picture on the website shows the dark block. I apparently got some incorrect information but was told to come in to the store and see if they could order the correct set.

Part 2: The Wait

So we packed up our set and headed to the store, only to find out that the item was now on backorder. All we could do is sign up for an email notification when the item got back in stock. We were extremely frustrated, but about a week later, the knives were back in stock. We headed back to the store again and were told a new story this time–that the knife set we got had the same UPC as the online item, so it seemed that the light colored block was correct and that Bed Bath & Beyond probably just had an outdated photo.

“Well THANKS A LOT!” I was thinking. The dark block was a huge selling feature for me and I never would have added it to the registry if I knew that the picture didn’t represent the item you’d actually get. The knife set was way too expensive to not have it be exactly what we thought we were getting. The guy we spoke with was very understanding and offered to call Wüsthof and see if he could get a dark block.

Part 3: Throwing In the Towel

A couple weeks went by with no word on the block and we finally gave up. We decided that we really just wanted to start using our knives and that we could deal with the block for now and buy a dark one out-of-pocket later.

But it wouldn’t be that simple

Part 4: The Unanticipated Complication

While we were placing the knives in the block, we noticed that the tip of the biggest knife was bent. And I mean REALLY bent. So we packed up the knives again and headed to the store (thankfully it’s only a five minute drive). The salespeople were pretty shocked at seeing the knife and did an exchange with no questions asked. The new set was scheduled to arrive in no more than two weeks.

We also ran into the guy we had spoken with before and he told us he’d follow up on the block situation. A few days later, he called and said that they would be able to get the dark block for us and that he would let us know when it came in. We were finally getting somewhere!

Part 5: Rinse and Repeat

Our new set arrived yesterday and we opened it with excitement. When we pulled out the knife block we literally hugged each other and jumped up and down because it was the darker version that we had been wanting! I quickly rubbed it with a little mineral oil and it looked gorgeous. Clearly, I thought, this would be the end of our crazy knife story.

Clearly, I was mistaken.

Jason closely inspected each knife as he unpacked it and slid it into the block. We were aghast to find that the large Cook’s Knife had a damaged blade–AGAIN. Not as much damage this time, but to replace that knife alone would be $129.99. At that price, I kind of expect perfection.

So tonight we will be heading back to the store. This time, we will ask if we can just exchange the one knife, because we would really like to start using the other ones if possible. I will update this post tonight with our findings!

Part 6: Things Are Looking Up

The people at Bed Bath and Beyond were very cooperative and ordered us a new knife, no questions asked. We were able to keep the rest of them, which is great. I finally got to try some of them out tonight and am very pleased. Hopefully the new knife won’t get damaged in shipping for a –third– time.

Update 05/26/2010: I am happy to announce that the Cook’s Knife arrived safe & sound today, in perfect condition! Finally the saga has come to an end!

This year, we’re trying the extremely popular couch-to-5k program. Friday, April 2nd was our first workout.

For Week 1, the schedule is as follows (do this 3 days in week 1):

1. Walk 5 minutes for warm-up
2. Alternate between 60 seconds of running and 90 seconds of walking until you reach 20 minutes (25 if you count the warm-up)

Getting Started

Our first run of Week 1 was on a Friday. It went pretty good and wasn’t difficult to where it takes away all your motivation. We ran again the following Monday and it still felt pretty good.

Then it started to rain. And by rain, I mean it poured. If it were 60+ degrees and pouring, I would have still entertained the idea of a run, but it was only 40 degrees out and cloudy. So we set our sights on Friday.

Cue the family emergency that thwarts even the best intentions. Again, our run would have to wait. Thankfully by Sunday, the madness had died down enough to sneak in the last run for the week.

Thoughts Overall

Though it took more than a week for us to complete Week 1, it feels good to know we were able to fit it in even when life handed us trash (lemons are nowhere near adequate to describe the weekend we had). The 60 second intervals for Week 1 were just enough to get us a little tired but not long enough to make us hate running—really important when you get easily discouraged.

Next stop, C25k Week 2. I’m not really sure how it will go, but there’s no harm in repeating Week 1 if need be.

Update 04/20/2010: While we intended to move on to week 2, we recently suffered the passing of a family member and have not yet had the time to get back into a routine.

Fast forward to now. We’ve signed a new lease for an apartment and are settling in for the long haul. I couldn’t be happier with the decision, so I thought I’d outline some really good reasons one might choose to be a renter rather than an owner. To be clear, this isn’t intended to discourage or mock home owners in any way but rather to challenge the idea that renting is just “throwing money away.”

[Just to clarify, when I use the term "owner," I mean someone who has a mortgage on a home, not someone who owns a home outright.]

1) Grounds-keeping duties are not your problem

Hate mowing the lawn, pulling weeds, or shoveling snow? When you rent, all of that is taken care of. Instead of spending time doing those types of chores, you can spend your time doing things you enjoy.

2) Maintenance is included in your rent

It’s a big relief knowing that if an appliance breaks, your landlord will take care of it. No need to worry how an unexpected repair will fit into your budget. It just gets fixed.

3) You may not be responsible for all utilities

It’s fairly common for at least some utilities to be including in your rent. Heat, water, and trash removal have all been included. This is simply impossible in the land of home ownership. And depending on what you’re renting, your utilities might cost a lot less than a home or condo.

4) If your financial situation changes, it’s much easier to get out of a lease than a mortgage

Consider two families. Family #1 rents a duplex, while family #2 owns a home. The economy starts to downturn and layoffs mean that both families are now down to only one income. Family #1 decides that it it would be best to break their lease and move in with a very generous relative until they get back on their feet. Family #2 also has a generous relative, but “breaking” the mortgage isn’t an option.

The point is that Family #1 has a lot more flexibility to make drastic changes in order to prevent going into debt. Though breaking a lease will result in a fee, it’s a one-time hit. Getting behind on a mortgage can really quickly snowball into foreclosure.

5) You don’t have to pay property taxes or interest on a loan

A major factor that caused Jason and I to stop house hunting was that we weren’t sure we’d be staying in Lansing for a long time. If we had found a house, the first few years of payments would have just gone to paying off the interest on the loan. Therefore, a home is a good long-term investment.

Property taxes are an easy to overlook part of home ownership. They can significantly change how what mortgage payment you can afford and they never go away. As a renter, you don’t directly pay property taxes, rather, it is included in your rent payment.

Conclusion

This probably sounds like a renter trying to justify the fact that they couldn’t afford to buy a home, but that’s definitely not the case. We simply took a hard look at our finances and realized it wasn’t the right time for us. We don’t regret our choice and have learned that home ownership isn’t always the best option.

Update 05/31/2010: Jason found a helpful calculator for determining how long you would need to live in a house for it to be better than renting.

Last weekend was a bit cold and rainy, but I spotted some plants sprouting up around the apartment. I was pumped and grabbed my camera to snap some pictures. I forgot my lunch at home one day this week and I ran home to eat. The sun was out and the Crocus plants that were just buds on Saturday were blooming! I knew I couldn’t pass up this photo opp. Here’s one of my favorites:

If you like it, you can check out a slideshow of my spring 2010 pictures so far.

We decided that aside from Food Network, there wasn’t a great deal of television content that we tune in to regularly. By and large, we could access most of the programs we enjoy online. With that in mind, Jason began the search for media center software we could run from a PC and connect to our TV. The idea was to have a server for our personal media files and use a program to access them and play them on the television in addition to streaming online video content. He found Boxee, which was designed to do just that. While it shows a lot of promise, it also behaves a little wonky on my Windows XP machine.

The fatal flaw in our plan (and the reason we eventually gave in) relates to how we use television. While we don’t tune in to many shows regularly, we do a lot of passive viewing. Until cable was gone, we didn’t realize how often we found things to watch just by channel surfing. With only the basic local channels, there is a lot less to surf. We also tend to use the television as background noise.

Our passive viewing style was in direct opposition to what a program like Boxee requires. Streaming television over the internet is very purposeful: you actively pick and choose the shows you want to watch. It’s great when you missed last week’s episode of Scrubs. Not so great when you just want to chill out on the couch and watch some random television. You are also at the mercy of your connection speed when your main source of television content is streaming over the internet. And if your internet connection is down, then your television options are limited too.

After one too many choppy streams of The Daily Show and finding nothing on our local channels, we threw in the towel. We didn’t get anything fancy—no HD, DVR, or On Demand. Though it changes our budget, I’m looking forward to once again watching Barefoot Contessa on Saturdays and going to bed with The Daily Show on weekdays. This time, Comcast, you win. This time.

so, uncluttering, huh?

I’ve never been a super neat and tidy person, but I have grown to appreciate tidiness in my home, and having just moved into a smaller apartment, my uncluttering urge has kicked into high gear. The process is still very new to me, but I thought it would be worthwhile to post the steps I’ve been following to achieve a more uncluttered lifestyle.

1) Detect clutter

I have found that clutter in my home falls into three categories:

1. Clutter that is junk
2. Clutter from things we don’t need/use anymore
3. Clutter from things we need that just don’t have a place

2) Plan and execute an strategy for dealing with the clutter

For “junk” clutter, my course of action was to throw it out or recycle it. I had a much more difficult time with clutter from items we don’t need/use. I had been hanging on to a lot of stuff from my time as a college student, so there were some memories attached. I had to be brutally honest with myself and decide if I’d ever use it. My course of action for this stuff was to donate it to Goodwill.

I found that my clutter problem was mostly that items had no place to live.We have books but no bookshelf. Shoes in the entryway but no shoe rack. Et cetera, et cetera. I blame myself for this state of affairs. Until recently, I couldn’t really convince myself that a shelf or other piece of furniture was a worthwhile purchase. Let’s just say I have seen the light and it looks like a ladder-style shelf in my favorite dark wood color!

Though the thought of buying things makes me wince, I do have some future purchases planned to help me with the organizing. A baker’s rack will help store cookbooks and other kitchen items that we use a lot. The next priority is a basic desk for my computer and laptop, but I am currently very disheartened with the search for one having found nothing that is quite what I want and priced reasonably.

3) Repeat As Needed

It’s worthwhile to mention that I didn’t get rid of everything in one fell swoop. It has been and continues to be a process. The first time I went through my clothing I found a lot of donations. A couple months later I went through again and found some more. Then Jason and I went through other things and ended up with a trunk load. Now that we’ve moved we have yet another, smaller, pile building up.

If you are unsure whether you should keep an item, it may help to put it on a list of potential clutter. Then, in a month or two, revisit the list. If you haven’t used the item (and it’s not a seasonal item like a winter coat in July), then it’s probably safe to eliminate it.

Looking Ahead

You may be wondering how to maintain your clutter-free environment after the initial uncluttering is complete. A common method I have seen is the “one in, one out” rule. Basically, if you bring a new object into your home, something else must go to make room. I think my kitchen will be a prime candidate for this method. You can also modify it to “one in, two out” and so on if you need to accelerate the uncluttering.

To some degree, you also need to be committed to keeping your home clutter free. It may take a little longer to put something back in its proper place, but the payoff is a more comfortable environment.

How do you manage/eliminate clutter in your life?

I will try to throw some pics up here as soon as I unbury my camera and have some free time.

I think so.

The story was thought provoking to me because I recently made a donation to my local public radio station, WKAR. I questioned whether my own motives involved the t-shirt for first-time donors. I would say that in this case, the bonus gift was the final push that made me open up my wallet. I loved the NPR programming so much that I had been planning to donate for a while. Will I donate again next year, even with no “thank you” gifts? Absolutely.

I almost wonder if the fact that donations are tax-deductible adds to the feeling of entitlement when doing “good deeds.” When you get something in return, giving suddenly becomes lots more convenient, and I think this is where it becomes questionable. Altruism is defined as “the belief in or practice of disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others,” and I don’t think a lot of that exists anymore.

I’m not trying to argue that you shouldn’t give anything unless you are going to be completely selfless about it. But I do think we should be honest with ourselves about our motives. Would you still contribute to fighting AIDS in Africa if you didn’t like coffee? If the answer is yes, awesome! Next time, skip the coffee and donate $12 to the cause. That’s $11 more for the charity than if you bought some coffee and let Starbucks make the donation. If the answer is no, that’s okay too.

What do you think? Is it giving to receive okay if the net benefit is positive? Is something better than nothing?

I suppose an introduction is in order–My name is Amy Schiffman and I am a Front-End Web Developer living in Lansing, Michigan. In addition to the web, I am also passionate about photography and cooking. I could go on, but I could also just send you to my about page for some more detailed info.

I am hoping to use this blog as place for me to write about the things I love. If I’m really lucky, someone out there will find it useful too. Thanks for visiting, and come back again soon!