Go Steelers!

Pre-game shot.

Sorry In Advance: I'm working with a trainer and a dietitian

So, let me start this by saying sorry. I've made a commitment to drop some serious weight and it's going to change a few things...at least for a bit.

No, I'm not apologizing for doing something for myself. I'm saying sorry, because I know I've conditioned a lot of people around me to expect a certain level of debauchery when they hang around with me.

Not to take too much credit, but I'm sure I've drug some of you down along with me. In fact, debauchery is the backbone of several relationships. So, I understand it's going to leave a few skid marks when I stop on a dime and make some major changes. I get it. But, you're just going to have to bear with me.

Here's a brief look back and a look for where I'm headed.

During most of the early part of my life, I was thin as a rail. In fact, people often questioned whether I was eating at all. I was undersized for the sports I was playing and I was too thin in general. In fact, I often chuckle now when I see the shirts "I beat anorexia." I was by no means anorexic, I ate like a horse. It just so happened that I played sports year-round and was quite active. So, despite eating like a competitive eating champion on a daily basis, I was still a skeleton.

So, naturally, when I got to college and I was no longer

playing organized sports year-round, I started packing on a few pounds. But, really there was no issue. In reality, through my college years, I packed on several pounds and it really didn't even register as a blip on the radar. In fact, I rather enjoyed having some mass and still relatively being in shape.

Well, enter graduation. Back at home. Still living the college life style. Partying with old friends. Except, I was no longer walking miles to class. I was no longer biking around town. Life was pretty much working retail, finding the beer special of the night and trying to find a job.

If you think your lifestyle couldn't get any more stagnant, you need to find yourself a desk job. Yep, after months of searching and a false-start with the Penguins, I landed a desk job--probably the most stagnant you can be--short of being dead. It becomes a lethal combination. You can finally afford to party like you always wanted to, and you're sitting still more than you ever did in your life.

But, hey, at least I was out every night, right? Well....enter marriage. Yep,

remember that Sunday night volleyball league? It was replaced by game night.

Fifteen years of work and eleven years of marriage later, I'm huge. No, not like reality TV huge, or Godzilla intervention huge. I'm huge for me.

The hints are there. People say, wow, you've changed

since your wedding pix. Translation: "Damn dude, did you eat Woody?" Or simple things like my wife buying me a reinforced outdoor folding chair. "Translation, JIMMY! You're killing my dainty lawn furniture. Here, take a big boy chair and make it your own."

I've dropped 20, 30 pounds before with crash dieting. But, somehow I've managed to re-find them. I'm not in any major health concerns. In fact, I just completed a 9-week 5k running program. So, I'm in at least decent cardiovascular shape. But, the weight isn't coming off like it used to. Something had to change.

I've tried doing it on my own. Doing the treadmill and still doing the fork and 16oz beer curls (sometimes 22oz depending on the brand). But, I wasn't taking off the weight like I wanted to. So, I decided to enlist some pro's.

Now I have a trainer and a dietitian. I've got a goal to lose 20 lbs in one month. Mark your calendar for August 16! But, it is exactly what it's called, a change. So, the old, go-with-the-flow, partying Woody is going to be on the sidelines for a bit.

For the next 6 weeks, my entire diet and workout plan is dictated by this program. Essentially, my routine will be:

• 7am: 1 protein, 2 fibrous
• 10am: .5 protein, .5 fibrous
• 12pm: 1 protein, 1 fibrous, 1 snack
• 3pm: .5 protein, .5 fibrous
• 5pm: 2 protein, 2 fibrous
• 10pm: 1 snack
• 8 glasses of water and some of my old-reliable unsweetened iced tea
• 3 scheduled ass kickings by my trainer

I realize that's going to crimp on the normal modus operandi of how I spend my time with all of you, my friends and family. Hell, it's crimping on MY life...haha. But, much like I did when I went to get my master's degree, I'm just going to hunker down and plow through this.

I expect a certain amount of "you should do it this way," "here just try this," "what, not even one drink with me." I'll just politely nod--or in some cases punch you in the throat.

And, so, here I sit, eating what I would often refer to as "cat food," and writing this blog. Like I said, without giving myself too much credit, I know I created a monster. I know I created expectations that at any given time, I could go out, eat a horse and chug a brewery and not miss a beat.

In fact, I still could do those things, but right now I'm not. That guy's on the bench for at least the next six weeks and most likely on limited duty thereafter. So, I am sorry that it's probably going to cause some panic and confusion among those that expect that from me. But, like all things, it'll work out....once I'm down several pounds....

Center For Hope Needs Help Feeding Hungry Children

The Center For Hope in Ambridge, PA really needs our help in providing free meals to hungry children.

The Center for Hope in provides outreach and service to a community that has undergone economic hardship and demographic change in what has been designated a distressed community. Last year alone, more than 22,000 visitors used CFH services.

The Center provides services, including: a food pantry, a clothes closet, a free lunch program, literacy programs, vocational rehab, WIC nutritional education, after school tutoring programs and many other community services.

I received an email yesterday that the children's free lunch program ran out of meals for a second time the other day--estimating that they had about 30-40 more kids to feed than they had meals available and a girl was crying for fear that there would not be enough food for her.

Fortunately, the volunteers at the Center were able to make use of supplies from the food pantry (another service they provide) to make lunches for the children. And the Center is working closely with the YMCA to make sure that there will be enough lunches to make sure they are prepared to serve nearly 100 meals daily.

The Center wants to make absolutely sure that they never have to turn away a hungry child (and they never will!). But, they desperately need some supplies:

Jelly (no peanut butter re: allergies)

Small packs of cheese crackers, cookies, etc..

Applesauce or fruit cups

Packs of raisins

Sealed packs of bologna

Cereal bars (no nuts)

Nachos

Cheese

Plastic silverware

Paper or styrofoam cups

Plastic or paper plates

Anything else that would help feed hungry children

If you are in the Beaver County area and are willing to provide the Center with these much-needed supplies, the Center is at 233 Merchant St. Ambridge, PA 15003. Their number is 724-251-4899. If you're not able to make it to the Center but would like to help, please let me know. I will try to make arrangements to pick up the supplies.

UPDATED: 11/3/2010 for formatting

Is The HTC Really Incredible???

As usually happens with these blogs...somebody asked me a question. I wrote up the answer and thought maybe some of you might find this useful as well. I was asked about my thoughts on the HTC Incredible. Well, if your'e thinking about getting one, this might be useful to you as well.

The HTC Incredible is a pretty slick phone. It's quick and the touch screen is very responsive vs other Droid phones and its iPhone counterparts.

One of the major selling points for this phone for me was the 8 mega pixel camera. The camera is heads and tails above the resolution of its Droid and iPhone peers--not to mention it has a flash (unlike iPhone).

I use the camera probably more than most other functions on the phone and I have been very pleased with the quality of the auto-focus, zoom and even some of the downloaded camera effects.

Beyond loads of pictures, I use the phone as an aggregator for my numerous email, social and SMS messaging. It may take a bit for the "auto correct" to learn some of your favorite phrases. And, much like any phone or computer -- the speech to text functionality is an absolute mess.

I love the integration with Google Calendar. I maintain a Google Calendar and I sync it with my desktop, laptop and phone. The "widgets" which show upcoming events on your home screen--along with date, weather, etc...make your home screen a wildly useful and dynamic tool -- rather than just a launch pad for apps.

There is definitely a huge library of apps--just a little different from the environment from iPhone.

My take would be that because the Droid OS is more of a web environment, a lot of the apps tend to take on a little more of a mobile web feel. Whereas, with the iPhone OS, there are some native actions that can be built into the apps that give them a different feel from just a mobile web.

On the other side of the coin, you don't have all the proprietary restrictions that iPhone OS has. So, you CAN view Flash, which is still a big part of the web experience--despite whatever Steve Jobs says.

The built-in GPS and magnometer are fantastic. Droid OS has integration with the mobile web and its navigation program (free and included). So, you can search the web for a venue and if it has an address listed, you can highlight that address and navigate to it.

The navigator also includes satellite view and StreetView(tm) where available. In addition, you can also make use of the GPS and magnometer to enjoy Google Earth and Google Sky.

Googke Sky will actually augment reality so that you can tilt and rotate to see exactly what stars (or planets) that you are looking at.

Layrs also makes use of similar functionality to let augment reality to see anything around you, including recent Tweets, Wikipedia locations, apartments for rent, FourSquare/Gowalla venues and YellowPages sites.

The down side of all this functionality? This phone is an absolute battery pig. I'm not joking when I say for you to keep your charging cord with you. If you use this power phone the way that it is meant to be used -- plan on charging it mid day (and again at night).

The OEM battery is only 1300 mAh. It's no lie when I tell you that I spent the better part of the first week tweaking all of my settings so that I could get through a day with my usual FourSquare, Gowalla, Twitter and eMail activities.

I've found a happy medium with the power settings while I am waiting for Verizon to release the extended-life battery in July. I've heard it will be a 2150 mAh battery and will be discounted for current Incredible owners. Needless to say, I'll be picking one up.

One key to managing your battery life will be managing the apps/functions that you have running in the background. It's great that Droid OS enables you to run multiple apps. But, remember, that's multiple draws on the battery. And, even while you're not using an app, it can still run in the background and draw on your battery.

One of the best ways to balance your multi-tasking and battery life is to download a free app -- Advanced Task Killer. As the name implies, this app kills all the background apps you may have running. This is great for conserving battery life and getting more enjoyment from your phone.

Some free apps that I would suggest you look into to enhance your experience would be:

• Advanced Task killer
• AP Mobile
• Camera 360 Free
• CBS News
• Digg
• FourSquare
• Fox News
• Fx Camera
• Google Goggles
• Google Sky Map
• Gowalla
• iHeartRadio
• Layar
• Mashable
• Thompson Reuters
• Pandora
• Pittsburgh (WPXI)
• TwiDroid (much better than Peep or Twitter app)

As far as accessories go, I did not buy a case, but my father did. He bought a clear case. I just purchased the protective screen covers. They're outrageously overpriced at Verizon, but my phone always ends up in my pocket with my keys -- and these little plastic covers take the hit for my screen.

As I eluded to earlier, I am holding out for the extended life battery. So, I will be purchasing that. But, until then, you may want to look at a car charger. I would NOT buy the one from Verizon. Your power cord also doubles as a USB charger. You can buy a USB car charger adapter at Target or WalMart dirt cheap. Then voilà, you have a car charger.

All-in-all it's a great phone. The combination of the speed of the HTC Incredible with the Droid OS makes it a worthy opponent to the iPhone.

As the OS matures and more apps become available, I'd even venture to say it could be better than the iPhone. But, for right now, it is simply Verizon's first legitimate contender to the iPhone--keeping in mind, it comes with a much stronger network than its iPhone counterpart.

Let me know if you come up with any questions or see anything you think I should check out. I'm still tinkering with mine as well.

As I indicated above, if you have any thoughts or tips that you used to make your HTC Droid Incredible a better phone, let me know.

A "NOVEL" way to Help Those In Need

Over the weekend, I received a request for help from a fraternity brother that is teaching at a specialized school district in Chester, PA. Her school does not have the money to purchase literature for her students that are up against reading level requirements to meet PSSA (state education standards). These are students that live in a challenged area and have made a commitment to meet GPA and educational standards to attend this school.

The request for help is simple, they need novels for their literature classes in order to meet state education standards and testing. The teacher has made a list on Amazon and has already included the shipping information. The books can be new or used and will continue to reach students long after this school year. There are literally books that you can buy and send for less than a dollar!

By purchasing even a single book, you can help students this year and years to come. I've included a snip-it of the request I received below so that you can learn about some of the demographics of her school district. I do hope that you will consider buying a book from this list: http://amzn.com/w/2PLS52UH1NNO9

I work at a specialized school within the Chester Upland Public School District called Smedley Allied Health High School. My students had to have certain GPA requirements and go through an interview process to get in, and it helped if they had an interest in a health career. I teach 100 9th grade boys and girls. I'm writing you today because I and my students need your help.

I understand that it's almost the holiday season, and it's also a recession. However, I wouldn't ask if I didn't really need your help. My district just doesn't have the money to buy novels for my students, and they desperately need to read novels to improve their reading levels (our PSSA scores are literally the worst in Pennsylvania). I have a list of five novels that I need 30 copies each of on a wish-list I've created on Amazon.com. I'm not asking anyone to buy a whole set - one or two would even be helpful. Whatever you can spare/afford, I would really appreciate it.

Just to give you an idea of the poverty in Chester and therefore of our district, the average income of a Chester resident is $13,000 a year. That's average - not the lowest. In the United States, a family of three making $18,000/year is the poverty line - anything below that is considered extremely poor. Most students in Chester don't even graduate from high school, let alone go to college. Only 1 out of every 3 people over the age of 25, living in Chester, has a high school diploma. I want my students to be different. I want them to succeed, and right now, they want to too. I just need to help them learn to read and develop their skills, but to do that, I need novels, and I need your help to get them.

Here's the link to my wish-list. Like I said - whatever you can afford, I would greatly appreciate. Also, please forward this to any friends or other family you may think would be willing to help out. http://amzn.com/w/2PLS52UH1NNO9

Happy November: Market District Giveaway Monday

OK, so I didn't give anything away over the weekend, but my procrastination is your gain. Here's your chance to win a $25 Market District gift card in celebration of the new Market District store opening in Robinson this week.

As you may know, Market District is more than a grocery store. It is also a resource. For example, MarketDistrict.com offers tips and solutions to maximize your meal preparation experience. So, today's gift card contest will see how well you can use the Market District site as a resource.

Go to MarketDistrict.com and tell me the following: What composition of ground beef is best for a balance of lean, juicy burgers? If you are on Twitter, Direct Message me with your answer @woodysworldtv. If you are on Facebook, send me a message with your answer.

I will do a random drawing from the submitted answers at 8pm tonight (11/2/2009).

Woody's Trick or Treat Market District Contest #3

Woody's Trick or Treat Market District Contest #3 for a $25 gift card for the new Robinson Township location is a fun one -- a TRICK! Since my last contest was a Facebook-only, this one will be Twitter-only.

For contest #3, you must place a post-it (or other type of note) on an unsuspecting co-worker's back (or friend) that says I follow @marketdistrict on Twitter. You must then take a picture of it and post it on Twitter with the hashtag #MarketDistrictRocks. Note: it will help if you @WoodysWorldTV too.

You have until 5pm tomorrow (10/30). I will use a random-number generator to pick among the people that post pictures and use the hashtag.