A Bit of History and Frustration!

As I prepare to pay my taxes, yet again, I must rant for a moment... As you read this, note that I am neither a Democrat or Republican. I subscribe to no "one political ideology" other than I vote my own mind. With that said here goes the rant... 

Did you know the Internal Revenue Service was started in 1862 to fund the war between the states. I think we are still paying on that debt. It sucked in 1862 to be a taxpayer and still sucks now.  The IRS is an agency that is controlled by no elected official.  It is an independent arm of the Treasury Department. Sure tax codes are set and approved by the executive and legislative branches of the government but the IRS has almost free reign in their approach to dealing with the American people.

I'm wondering, whatever happened to the Jeffersonian idea of "Democratic Process" and "No Federal Government" intervention into the lives of the citizens of the United States? As many of you know, I served and defended my country as an officer in the military and love it beyond belief. Regardless of this fact, I find that I'm sick of all the  political bullshit in Washington, on both sides of the fence! We need change!!! Right now! I feel as if I'm personally funding the national debt!!! Someone is having a damn good time and it's not me!!!

I want to offer one more thought before leaving this post. It involves  savings in next year's federal budget and perhaps a resultant reduction in the National Debt.  Let's institute a flat tax in this country!  Everyone would pay their fair share.  Don't give me the party line of "disproportionate burden on the poor."  10% is 10% of whatever number you are deducting it from.  It's fair and extremely democratic.  It would definitely increase revenue!  There would be no deductions.  Some will say that a flat would hurt housing.  Guess what, the idiots in Washington already have their sites set on not allowing you to deduct your mortgage interest in the very near future.  Think about it for a moment, the government is already reducing the amount of deductions that you can take nearly every year.  If you are like most middle income families, you fall in the 25% to 35% tax bracket.  You somehow manage to reduce you tax burden down to about 15%-20% using your deductions, while others pay next to nothing. When congress finally gets around to removing your one true deduction of owning a home, you'll pay more and they'll spend more, regardless of the party in power, but you will suck it up and continue to own your home because that is the true American dream.

You know what I really like about the idea of a flat tax, it would allow the American people to un-employ several thousand Internal Revenue Service workers...Your taxes would simply be deducted by your employer or perhaps, if self-employed, payed by you on a monthly basis and you would never have to deal with filing a return.  A flat tax would put much needed money into reducing the National Debt, simplify the process, and  help free up money to grow the economy, its simple economics.  Best of all, everyone would pay their fair share!  

A Huge Change!

I'll begin this post by stating that there have been some major changes to my body and my life! 

I recently took an 8 week challenge from my wife. You see, she is a distributor for a product called Le-Vel Thrive. When she first told me what she was promoting I was very skeptical.  She said she had found this new product that would help me get my weight under control, have more energy and mental clarity, as well as improve my overall feeling of health. All I had to do is take two pills when I first awoke in the morning, have a shake mix for breakfast about 20 minute later and put on their DFT foam patch for the day. She stated that I wouldn't have to change anything else in my life style and I would see and feel a huge difference in my body. This sounded kinda like one of those miracle prescriptions that never pan out, right! Right! After a couple days of pestering I took her up on the challenge. 

I didn't really notice anything until about the third day of the challenge. The first thing I noticed was I had more energy. The second thing I noticed was that the normal aches and pains that I felt on most mornings were gone. The third thing that I noticed was I wasn't reaching for the coffee pot to get me going. I use to be about a six cup a day coffee drinker, but not anymore.  Although I had taken notice of this change, I didn't say anything to my wife about feeling better, I just let it ride. 

At the end of the first week I weighed myself and to my surprise I had actually lost three pounds and I was feeling really great! This weight loss continued throughout the eight week challenge. Every week I found myself 2 to 3 pounds lighter. By the forth week I started including a bit of exercise into my weekly routine and the pounds just melted away. I found myself excited about getting out and doing things again. My golf game really improved and I started looking forward to walking my weekly round of 18 holes and carrying my golf bag again. 

Thanks to my wife's encouragement for me to begin this challenge I have gone from being a middle-aged 6 foot 1 inch couch potato, weighing 243 pounds, to trimmer and more energetic 218 pound healthy person. I've lost 4 inches off my waist line and put on lean muscle in the process. The challenge was probably a life saving event for me. My goal is to be under 200 pounds by the end of the year! I think I'll be there sooner. 

More energy and a better mood to get out and do the things I used to do is what the challenge has brought me. What's holding you back from accomplishing the things you want to accomplish? Do you want to feel better? Lose some weight? Have better mental clarity? For more information on the Thrive 8 Week Challenge go to www.rockymtnthrive.com . Either link will get you there! 

Take the challenge!  I've become such a believer in the product(s) that I can't image myself going a day without it! Thrive on! Live life to the fullest... Thank you to my wife for introducing me to this amazing experience. 

Peanut Butter and Molasses

 

And..

Peanut butter and molasses as a treat for your dog just doesn't sound right, or does it? It does when you consider that in a world of processed foods, there just doesn't seem to be anything out there that can be considered healthy. Most store bought treats contain large amounts of animal by-products, artificial flavors, artificial colors and artificial preservatives. All which can have an impact on your pet's overall health. 

Over the years we have experimented with many different types of treats for Lucy - some good and some not so good. We've tried people foods that were considered healthy but Lucy would just turn them down and besides, there can be dangers in feeding your dog the same foods that you eat. We've also tried what were considered wholesome foods from the pet store that upset her stomach and were very expensive. But there was one treat we could always count on that she could tolerate and seemed to enjoy and it just happens to be peanut butter! She just loves the stuff! I must warn you; it is not easy to watch your dog eat peanut butter, especially in its normal packaging. They will lick and lick to try to get it all out of their mouths. But they will never turn it down and it's actually good for them. 

One day while in the store I came across a box of dog treats that listed all natural and low fat "peanut butter and molasses" healthy treats for dogs. The treat is a hard baked cookie containing unbleached wheat flour, whole-wheat flour, blackstrap molasses, palm oil, whey oats, natural caramel, nonfat milk, egg, salt, baking soda, natural peanut butter and brewer's yeast. They are baked semi-hard to help keep teeth clean. There is no artificial anything in the cookie! I instantly purchased them and brought them home for my dog.

Lucy has been eating these cookies as a treat for about a year now and loves them. 
They come out of the box as what I would call a large cookie for a treat, so I break them up for her. She never gets more than one large cookie on any given day. She's actually on a schedule for her treats receiving about a third of a cookie three times a day. This helps us maintain her calorie intake and of course, her weight. What a great idea for a treat! 

Since I'm not in the business of selling dog treats, I won't list the company here on my blog but if you will drop me a note I will be happy to give you the name of the bakery. Just a note, if the company ever goes out of business I think these treats would be easily made from home. It might take just a little experimentation in the kitchen to make up a healthy treat for your favorite critter but it would be well worth the time to do so! 

Cheers!