Well, I started a new post that was telling the one person that reads this, hi Larry, why I've been away from the posting realm, but I got sidetracked by trying to find more games for my arcade and closed out Firefox. That basically sums up why I have neglected to post and at the same time illustrates my severe but untreated case of A.D.D.

Anyway, outside of writing papers for class and making my home arcade the coolest thing that I've ever made, I've been away from the blogger. This is because all of this Internet posting thing is just way too tedious and I just can't justify putting my incoherent rants up for everyone* to read... until now...

Over the past year an a half I've been indulging in one of my favorite things, beer. Now, we have to get something straight, Rian's not, and I love beer. Whether it was drinking it in the wee hours of the morning with Rian and Jeremy, or at a barbecue with friends where I dislocated my shoulder serving a volleyball, I've been enjoying every sip of my hoppy, malty friend. Well, this has taken it toll on my body by slapping an extra 25 pounds onto it. I'll give you a recap of the past three years to put this into perspective.

I ran a lot, I weighed 175 pounds. I stopped running because I got tired of being the mentally challenged kid who comes in last place and substituted running with beer and delicious fast food. I then weighed 200 +/- pounds. I don't know my exact heaviest because it fluctuated so much and I'm now scared of scales. That's it in a nutshell.

At the beginning of June I got some wild hair up my ass and decided (after running into a couple of people and they gave me the "you've been putting on weight" greeting) that I needed to do something about me being such a fatty. I also decided that if I did want to loose weight it would be contingent on three main things: I would have to become physically active again, I would have to dramatically change my eating habits, and lastly, I'd have to give up my beloved beer.

The first two are a completely separate post; the reason for this post is to explain how giving up beer has been a bitch and what I've substituted into beer's empty void.

Now in the past year-and-a-half I've tried to cut back on my beer intake, but its just been too easy to pick up a six pack and enjoy my Xbox 360. Drinking and playing Xbox makes me happy until my girlfriend sees that I'm drinking and then starts to bitch about it. Because we lived in a tiny apartment and I couldn't physically get away from her, I drank more. I also hated my job, so I drank more. I think it got the worst when I was getting a good buzz going by dropping 4 or 5 beers before I went to my job just to take the sting off. To make my point clear, I drank a lot.

Well, I fixed the job part, I quit. We fixed the apartment situation by moving to a two bedroom place where I get my own little man room. This has literally been the difference between my sanity and killing babys. I've been on the edge and killing babys seemed to be the logical way out. Now the last thing I needed to do is curtail my drinking and I found that in the form of running and vodka sodas.

All-in-all, this has worked out great. Vodka sodas are low in calories and I don't drink them all of the time. Vodka mixed with soda has little to no taste so I don't drink them because they have a unique taste. I should also mention that I like the different flavors of beer. Shit, I love every micro, specialty, and seasonal brew that every brewery has come out with.

Now that I have a new found drink, I've been experimenting with different vodkas and here are the three that I've tried so far:



Smirnoff - This is my "bargain" Vodka. Fifteen bucks for a 750 ml bottle and it works for parties. I found out that I don't drink these near as fast as beer so one bottle lasts much longer than a 12 pack of specialty brew










Three Olives Vodka - A small step up from the "bargain" vodka, I was able to pick up a bottle of this for 18 bucks on special from Bevmo and it does go down a little smoother. There are also different flavors that Three Olives is know for, but I'm not looking for anything too special. Vodka
flavored vodka works for me.









Ciroc - Finally we come to my favorite vodka. This shit is distilled from grapes and that is done 5 times. This shit is smooth. Almost tasteless and fucking flawless. Did I mention that I love this vodka? It should be noted that unless you're a baller and want to drop 8 to 10 bucks for a shot of this out at a bar, enjoying this at home or a party where you bring your own alcohol is going to be your best bet. If I recall correctly, 30 bucks will get you 750 ml at most stores.





So, to recap, I gave up beer and picked up running and vodka. I'm running more often than I'm drinking vodka so things are working out.