Food

What? You don't overindulge in the egg-and-beans on toast?

I really must try that. I'm quite certain I would find it good.

But the society we live in really does encourage obesity, so it's kind of an acceptable way to be now I think.

For all the talk about how society and fashion dictates an unhealthy underweight image for girls, what I see is a remarkable number of girls at the mall who are plain fat, and make no effort to disguise it. They have rather large belly rolls oozing out over the top of their jeans and they wear a midriff-bearing tight shirt. So I think you are correct ... there is a degree of acceptability to being fat. I don't think I'd go so far as to say it's desirable. Just not as discouraged as before.

As I get older, my ability to maintain my "ideal" weight -- 162 pounds -- gets harder and harder. Right now I'm hovering around 167, which for a 6'0" tall man is not at all bad. Except that most of that extra five pounds is smack in the middle of my belly. And I don't like that.

The culprit is pasta and bread. I love the stuff. Absolutely love it. But I can demonstrate through a few weeks of disciplined dieting that I can lose the belly by simply cutting out breads and pastas. I don't have to go on a severe carbohydrate-restricted diet. Just cut back on pasta dishes and bread ... and within two days I'm craving the stuff and within two weeks I'll have lost those five pounds.

My problem is this -- my lovely bride mixed up a big batch of this absolutely yummy pasta salad. It has cheese tortellini and tri-colored rotini, along with broccoli, carrots and celery, mixed up with a nice balsamic vinegar dressing. Hmmmmm ...

I love the stuff. It's like crack. I'm completely addicted.

* * *
This has absolutely nothing to do with food, but my mention of "rotini" made me think of it. I have settled on my preferred motor oil for my Goldwing. No, not some fancy synthetic motorcycle-specific oil like Mobil 1 or Amsoil, but ...

Shell Rotella T Heavy Duty 15W-40 Diesel Truck Oil



It turns out this stuff is nearly ideal for motorcycles with a shared engine/transmission design. The additive package of this has anti-wear (phosphorus and zinc) and anti-oxidation (calcium) capabilities that work quite well in a motorcycle.

Here's the best part ... a quart of Mobil 1 motorcycle oil: $9

A gallon of Rotella T ... $9

There is a huge community of oil-geeks out there. Huge. Check out this site.

:-)