Friday, August 30, 2013

New Toys!

Once every couple of months i splurge on a list of things i've wanted to buy. Finally got around to a few.

Earmes replica chair. The original costs about $600+. Got these open box replicas at a local warehouse for $120. These chairs have lumbar support and should help my posture and back. Love the contemporary look too!



Logitech K750 solar powered keyboard with chiclet keys. I've wanted the aluminum apple keyboard for a while, but they don't have a wireless version with the numeric keypad. Had to settle for the Logitech. It's wireless and solar powered. No batteries. Ever! Additionally i picked up the Logitech M510 wireless mouse. Big upgrade from my previous mouse. More DPI = more accuracy on the screen. The biggest plus was the USB dongle that comes with most wireless logitech products now. It's a tiny piece that plus directly to the USB. No wires = less clutter.



Feenix Collection mouse pad. I was originally going to get a desk pad from office depot, but figured I wanted something more designed specifically for a mouse. It's made out of plastic so it doesnt have the resistance of most cloth mouse pads or leather, but it's smooth and responsive. So far so good.



Sescom A/B switch. My other A/B switch i got from Radio shack was having issues. I picked this baby up from BH Photo and the sound quality went up. No interference and no back noise. Loving them. If you switch between headphones and speakers often, i highly recommend these, instead of always plugging / unplugging your headphones.



I also picked up Command Cable plugs that will help hide all the wires around my desk, along with a Blue Lounge Cablebox that will hide all my wires from under the desk. I haven't got around to setting it all up. I may just wait until i get a new desk which is next on my list. I'm looking at the Conference table by Galant from IKea at the moment.

Lastly, i may have to wait until Cyber Monday, but i'm pretty sure i'll pick up the Sager NP8235 this year.

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On another note, I have not been able to work out since Wednesday. My body is completely sore and i can barely move right now. I must have been really out of shape. I'm going to try again starting Monday. I have been eating better though. Brown rice and chicken.

Reboot. Restart. Go!

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Bronx's Six Pack Challenge

I'm going to start on a lean muscle building diet for the next 3 months (12 weeks) to create some six packs. I will try to log my progress through out the entire thing and possibly post before and after photos when the program is done.

The program is rather simple and I took a bunch of tips from Mike Chang's Six Pack Shortcuts program. Here's what's needed.

1. The want / need to change. It won't work if you have no self motivation.
2. A program calendar with goals for each day. A black marker to cross each day you complete. Work out about 30-45 minutes for 5 days. Rest during the weekend. Something like below.



3. Take a photo and weigh yourself each week

The program is simple with my own small modifications. The biggest problem I had with the original program was not being able to eat 5-6 times everyday. I'm too busy to find time to eat. I plan on eating 3 times a day. Breakfast, lunch, dinner. Breakfast will be 2x egg whites. Lunch and dinner will be chicken breast and brown rice. I was hesitant on using brown rice or carbs in general but i read that carbs is needed to avoid constipation, bad breath, fatigue, and slower brain functions. I will be eating this way from Monday to Friday. Sat and Sun will be cheat days where i eat anything i want with moderation. Additionally Saturday is my weight in day and photo day. Sunday is cooking day. I will be cooking for the rest of the week, which is 10 meals. Here's what you need for cooking:

1. George foreman grill
2. 10x re-usable microwaveable tupperware
3. Rice cooker
4. Brown rice
5. Chicken broth to cook instead of water for flavor. (I just cooked the rice, and i can't really taste the chicken broth, so i don't know if it's of any use)
6. Extra virgin olive oil spray
7. Spices (salt, pepper, lowry's seasoning, etc.)
8. Chicken breasts

Cook the rice for 10 servings. Cook the chicken with your own personal preferences in terms of spices. Use the olive oil to grease the foreman grill. The chicken should take about 8-10 minutes to cook on the foreman. Let it sit for about 5 minutes to cool. Use a cutting board and chop them into biteable pieces. Each container will have chicken and brown rice. The containers i use are pretty small, which is to control my portions.

Next is the actually workouts.

Week 1-4 is for muscle building and increase metabolism. (more muscle = higher metabolism)
Week 5-8 is for burning belly fat
Week 9-12 is the final phase to complete the physic.

If the goal isn't met by the 12th week, I may continue for another week of intense workouts to finish it up.

Six pack shortcuts talks about the importance of the "after burn effect" which is the calories you burn when not working out. We will see how this works out. The actual work outs would be too long to post here, so if you are interested you should checkout Mike Chang's Youtube channel for more information. Day 1 is tomorrow. Fighting!

Thursday, August 01, 2013

Drama Review: Shark



Revenge!! That is what this drama is about. A boy's father is murdered, and the boy is almost fatally killed after he came too close from finding the truth. He receives plastic surgery and plan his revenge for 12 years. The story unfolds as he tries to make the people responsible pay.

I don't really like the male lead on this one.. but Son Ye Jin made up for it. She is so gorgeous. Kinda looks like my ex-gf in a way.

The storyline is a little slow during the first 8 episodes. It gets more interesting from 10-20.

Rating: 7.5/10

Watch it free at Drama Fever.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Drama Review: I Hear Your Voice



A young girl is a witness to a brutal murder and helps convict the criminal in court. The son of the murder victim is forever grateful to this girl. He uses his supernatural power of being able to read people's thoughts to help this girl who is now a public defense attorney. During this time, the murderer is released from prison and is out for revenge.

I don't know any of the actors in this drama - and wasn't really interested in it until I was told it was the #1 drama in Korea at this time. It's receiving over 20% viewer rating. I agree with the people, this is a surprisingly good drama and worth the watch.

Watch it free at Drama Fever.

Monday, July 22, 2013

Song of the Day: 2NE1 - Falling in Love

Loving this song the more I listen to it.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Drama Review: Runaway



Rain before going to the army and before he started dating Kim Tae Hee. How he ended up landing Kim Tae Hee is beyond me - and i'm jealous. That's an entirely different topic though. In this drama he is actually charismatic and plays his role very well.

The story is about a private detective that is hired to find the man that killed the heroine's family. Rain plays the private detective and Lee Na Young plays the traumatized victim. There are lots of plot twists and turns in this drama - but it feels very overdone. Many of the scenes were predictable and the dialogue between the characters starting after episode 10 starts to put you to sleep. The action and fighting sequences were done well during the first 3 episodes - then it kinda gets boring. Boring in the sense that it's the same guy chasing Rain down a street.

I would recommend watching at least the first 3 episodes because they are jammed packed with expensive action scenes and explosions. I'm not a big Rain fan, but did come across this drama because Lee Na Young is dating Won Bin.. I didn't know who she was so I googled her and this drama popped up and sparked my curiosity.

Rating: 7/10

Watch it on Dramafever for free.

Tuesday, July 09, 2013

Drama Review: Love Rain



Oh Yoona.. so pretty. I have to rank her in the top 10 natural beauties in Korea. From all the pictures I've seen of her - there is no evidence that she had any plastic surgery done to her face. Didn't she originally debut as a child actress? My memory deceives me, and I can't be sure.

Love Rain is a story about young love. There are typical Korean drama: triangle love connections, parents objecting to their kids relationships, someone gets sick, and of course break up and make up. The setting in episode 1 is in Korea during the 1960's and Yoona and her friends are College students. Guy falls in love, girl falls in love, friend falls in love with the same girl, and the girl gets sick. That's just the beginning - as the story progresses into the future. What happens after? Go check it out. It's only 20 hours of your life. And about 15 of those hours you get to see Yoona. Oh, and there is lots of kissing... haha. :)

Rating: 7/10

Check out all 20 episodes @ Drama Fever.