I will let my words speak for themselves, as published in this month’s Atlantic magazine in Lori Gottlieb’s article, Marry Him: The case for settling for Mr. Good Enough (gulp):

“Then there’s my friend Chris, a single 35-year-old marketing consultant who for three years dated someone he calls “the perfect woman”—a kind and beautiful surgeon. She broke off the relationship several times because, she told him with regret, she didn’t think she wanted to spend her life with him. Each time, Chris would persuade her to reconsider, until finally she called it off for good, saying that she just couldn’t marry somebody she wasn’t in love with. Chris was devastated, but now that his ex-girlfriend has reached 35, he’s suddenly hopeful about their future.

“By the time she turns 37,” Chris said confidently, “she’ll come back. And I’ll bet she’ll marry me then. I know she wants to have kids.” I asked Chris why he would want to be with a woman who wasn’t in love with him. Wouldn’t he be settling, too, by marrying someone who would be using him to have a family? Chris didn’t see it that way at all. “She’ll be settling,” Chris said cheerfully. “But not me. I get to marry the woman of my dreams. That’s not settling. That’s the fantasy.”

Chris believes that women are far too picky: everyone knows, he says, that a single middle-aged man still has appealing prospects; a single middle-aged woman likely doesn’t. And he’s right. Single women are painfully aware of this. I hear far more women than men talk about getting married as a goal to be met by a certain deadline.”

Note: the interview was conducted over two years ago.

I love my big car but I also love American independence more and think that we rely way too much foreign oil and don’t spend nearly enough on energy innovation. Since coal and oil is still plentiful and cheap enough, there isn’t any reason, really, to dump R&D funds into alternative and renewable fuels, energy, and electricity. We need to in-source and work on ways to stop depending so heavily on foreign oil and the whims of kings and their kingdoms.

Congress is working on passing an energy bill that contains two major provisions, one that would up a fuel economy standard to 35 mpg — Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards — and another that would evolve our energy dependence more heavily on renewable electricity to 15% — Renewable Electricity Standards (RES). Together, these would end our Nation’s security-threatening dependence on Middle East oil, stop our money from flowing to terrorists, and keep our dollars at home growing the American economy.

Unfortunately, lobbyists and PACs are working hard to tear the bill apart, rendering it impotent and incremental instead of powerful and transformative.

I am working with a coalition to make sure the energy bill doesn’t get derailed. I need your help in making sure that the final bill makes it through before we get ourselves into even more of a mess. Check out Energy Bill 2007 and sign their petition.

Congress is working on passing an energy bill that contains two major provisions, one that would up a fuel economy standard to 35 mpg and another that would evolve our energy dependence more heavily on renewable electricity to 15%. Together, these would end our Nation’s security-threatening dependence on Middle East oil, stop our money from flowing to terrorists, and keep our dollars at home growing the American economy.

Unfortunately, lobbyists and PACs are working hard to tear the bill apart, rendering it impotent and incremental instead of powerful and transformative.

“Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them.” Via Jesus the Christ by way of Luke 12

Jesus the Christ According to Luke 12

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?

“Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

“Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. 40You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

First, Mark asks me what Quality Traffic Supply is all about and then David posts about it (which is where I think Mark learned about it).

I couldn’t tell Mark much about it. He will be launching a commerce site soon and wants traffic.

Advertising is a numbers game and I know that there is an industry expectation of a .5%-2% success rate. More traffic equals more customers, bottom line.

David flatters me by suggesting that I can bring traffic like rain, but if that were the case, Blog Vivant would be making better numbers.

I’m good enough. I’m smart enough. And, dog gonnit, people like me!

read more | digg story

Diane thinks we’re getting lazy, being slovenly, and dressing messy, “America is becoming too soft a society in which people believe they have license to dress like a mess, clock a 9-to-5 day, and still expect to get ahead.” It’s called entitlement.

Diane’s article, Linda Hirshman needs a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down, reminded me of the article I read on the 9th, Is this really feminism? I believe that feminism is the empowerment of women in a patriarchal system with the goal of achieving a quality of choice at least equal to that of men.

A woman’s choices should include whatever she wants, including the guilt-free choice to become a mom and stay at home with her children; or, alternately, become partner, dean, president, or laureate.

If it is indeed her choice (and not the result of coercion) a woman should not feel shame (or be made to feel ashamed) for making any choice. This choice should not be multiple choice: doctor, lawyer, scholar, politician, or writer. This freedom of choice, this choice feminism, need to allow, without judgement, “dropping out” to become a “full-time mother.”

I don’t know is this bodes well with Linda Hirshman in either Homeward Bound or her new book, Get to Work : A Manifesto for Women of the World:

“What do you need to live a good life in the real world? Among other things, a real job-and changing diapers isn’t one. “Opting out” is a trade-off that is almost guaranteed to blow up in your face, sooner or later. Linda Hirshman’s Get to Work-a clarion call for stay-at-home moms to blast out of the house-is a rocket-propelled grenade aimed directly at the mommy wars, and offers a bold plan for all women to find and be able to pay for the kinds of satisfying lives that a grown-up should want to lead.”

I studied feminist theory in college (Marxist-feminism, French feminism, Postmodern Feminism, Deconstructionism) and the objective was to dismantle the master’s house without the master’s tools. Yes, the goal was to reduce the master’s house to rubble, but what I fear has been built in its place looks much the same.

As far as I could tell, the original goal of feminism was to redefine a woman’s role in society from being a man’s possession (from daughter to wife) to being an equal to men. Feminism was about tearing off the patriarchal yoke. Unfortunately, if I am reading it right, Linda Hirshman believes that one yoke should be replaced by another: feminist expectations.

In other words, as a woman, If you have the potential to rule the world and usurp men, it is your responsibility above all else so to do. Until then, the struggle must continue unabated.

This isn’t about attaining choice, this is about attaining control.

One technique of control is manipulation and Linda Hirshman and her book, Get to Work, is using shame, judgement, and disappointment in order to make empowered, first-class, wealthy, affluent, elite, a-type, pedigreed women feel bad about themselves and their choices if their choices don’t include “living up to your full potential” as defined by becoming partner, dean, president, or laureate.

And that is not choice, that is obligation: exchanging one yoke for another; one societal expectation for another.

If you need cosmetic surgery or reconstructive surgery in the form of breast augmentation, breast reconstruction after mastectomy, breast reduction, the latest breast “lifting??? techniques, facial rejuvenation, eyelid surgery, face lift, neck lift, body contouring, liposuction or a tummy tuck, you know where to go in Arlington and Reston in Northern Virginia.

Featured Products, Services, and Information:

Breast Augmentation Frequently Asked Questions
Your questions about breast augmentation and other cosmetic procedures are best answered by Dr. Wendy Gottlieb. To schedule a consultation or an appointment at the Reston or Arlington office, please call 703-668-9499. More…

Breast Augmentation, Reduction, Reconstruction, & Lifts
Dr. Wendy Gottlieb has a special interest in breast surgery. In addition to an individualized approach to breast augmentation, Dr. Gottlieb performs reconstruction after mastectomy, breast reduction, and the latest breast “lifting” techniques. More…

Laser Hair Removal
By patient request, we are now offering laser hair removal. If you would like to make unwanted body or facial hair a thing of the past, I have something I think you’re going to like! If you have ever thought about receiving laser hair removal treatment, now is the time. More…

Laser Hair Removal Questions and Answers
It is important to us that you understand our laser hair removal procedures. We would like to share with you some of the common questions and answers our clients have had about laser hair removal and laser hair removal procedures. More…

Laser Vein Removal Laser System
Our CoolGlide system allows us to treat a wide range of aesthetic vascular conditions, including spider veins and reticular leg veins. Our ClearView handpiece with the variable spot size selector make treatments fast and easy. More…

Jan Marini Skin Care Products
Dr. Wendy Gottlieb is proud to offer Jan Marini skin care products to her patients. If you are interested in trying any one of Jan Marini’s skin care products, please call 703-668-9499 for a consultation or appointment at our Reston or Arlington office. We will be happy to work with you to find the right product for you and your skin. More…

BOTOX® Cosmetic Treatments
Dr. Wendy Gottlieb is proud to offer BOTOX® cosmetic treatments to her clients as a safe, simple, and effective way to treat severe frown lines and and other signs of aging. If you are interested in trying her BOTOX® cosmetic treatments, please call 703-668-9499 for a consultation or appointment at our Reston or Arlington office. We will be happy to work with you to find the right solution for you. More…

Obagi Skin Health Restoration System
Dr. Wendy Gottlieb is proud to offer We Carry the Obagi Skin Health Restoration System. If you are interested in trying Obagi Skin Health Restoration System, please call 703-668-9499 for a consultation or appointment at our Reston or Arlington office. We will be happy to work with you to find the right solution for you. More…

We Choose Mentor
Dr. Wendy Gottlieb is proud to feature Mentor products to her clients who are considering breast augmentation, breast reconstruction, reconstructive surgery, and liposuction & body contouring. If you are considering breast augmentation, breast reconstruction, reconstructive surgery, or liposuction & body contouring, please call 703-668-9499 for a consultation or appointment at our Reston or Arlington office. We will be happy to work with you to find the right solution for you. More…

American Board of Plastic Surgery Certified
Wendy Gottlieb is a board-certified plastic surgeon. Her certification was granted by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. More…

One of my dearest friends and clinical psychologist, Monique, popped me a Power Point presentation she researched and presented to her class on the topic of “Hooking Up.” She allowed me to publish the results here and they are rather quite compelling.

“Post hookup feelings of regret” was most interesting, “women’s feelings of regret centered on shame and self blame, compounded by not knowing their partner and lack of further contact with partner” while “men’s feelings of regret centered on a unattractive choice of hookup partner.”

Clinical Psychology Research on “Hooking Up” in College courtesy of Monique Moore

Definition
Hooking up (Paul, McManus & Hayes, 2000):

A sexual encounter which may or may not include sexual intercourse, usually occurring on only one occasion between two people who are strangers or brief acquaintances.

Frequency of Hookups
Paul & Hayes, 2002 survey of 187 college students (155 women, 32 men)

- 70% overall had participated in at least 1 hookup. (75% of men, 84% of women). Of that proportion, 91% had had more than one.

- Average number of hookups for both genders 10.28 (SD 11.22) during their college career
No significant difference between men/women in frequency of hookups

General statistics on hookups
Paul & Hayes, 2002

- 55% of students said that hookups involve anonymous partners

- 49% report that hookups are planned in terms of occurrence but not choice of partner

- 60% believe that either men or women are the instigators, whereas 28% believe that men are the instigators. 3% believe that women are the instigators

During hookups
Paul & Hayes, 2002

- 58% report that alcohol or drugs are typically present, 35% only alcohol, only 6% neither drugs nor alcohol

- 69% believe that hookup partners do not communicate, 25% think that partners engage in small talk, 4% say partners talk about what’s happening, 2% talk about future meeting, 1% talk about sexual history

- 16% of individuals who hooked up felt pressured during the hookup, whereas 34% felt out of control during the hookup (Paul, McManus & Hayes, 2000)

Post hookup
Men and women differed in what their feelings of regret consisted of (Paul & Hayes, 2002).

- Women’s feelings of regret centered on shame and self blame, compounded by not knowing their partner and lack of further contact with partner

- Men’s feelings of regret centered on a unattractive choice of hookup partner

Post Hookup
Other research suggests (Paul, McManus, & Hayes 2000) that post hookup

- 28% of participants that ‘hooked up’ but did not have intercourse and 49% of those that did have intercourse never saw their partner again

- Only 12% of all hookup participants indicated that a hookup evolved into a romantic relationship, that average length of which was 4 months.

Pluralistic Ignorance and hooking up
Pluralistic ignorance (Allport, 1924):

- When each individual in a group believes that their private attitudes are discrepant from the standard displayed by the public behavior of others. Accordingly, each group member conforms to their perception of the group standard, while believing that they are the only ones who don’t privately uphold it.

Research suggests (Lambert, Kahn & Apple, 2003)

- College students evaluated their own comfort level with hooking up as significantly lower than their estimate of same sex peer (F (1,262)= 7.55, p<.01). This effect was more pronounced for men.
Both men and women significantly overestimate the other gender's actual comfort with various hooking up behavior

Pluralistic Ignorance and Hooking up
Pluralistic Ignorance may be compounded by the communication surrounding hookups

- Many individuals say they discuss ONLY their positive hookup experiences with their friends, which may create a glorified norm that doesn’t accurately represent many hookup experiences. A vicious cycle ensues where if the hookup doesn’t meet the positive standards, students self blame and hide the experience, which just reinforces the positive standard (Paul & Hayes, 2002)

Personality and situational variables’ influence in hookups
What distinguishes individuals who don’t hookup (N-HU), from those who hookup without intercourse (HU), and who those who hookup with intercourse (HU-S)? (Paul, McManus & Hayes, 2000)

- Alcohol intoxication and fear of loss of individuality increases across hookup groups (N-HU HU-S individuals are differentiated from other groups by high impulsivity, low concern for personal safety, low dependency, and desire for high autonomy

Personality and situational variables’ influence in hookups
HU-S individuals are distinguished from HU individuals by a game playing love style (sexual conquest rather than connection)

- N-HU individuals prefer not to be the center of attention, are not fearful of intimacy, are least likely to have a game playing orientation toward partners, and are highest on self-esteem and have significantly longer romantic relationship commitments (M = 28.3, SD=19.95.) versus other groups (MHU=17.41, SD = 16.37 M HU-S=14.3, SD =14.3)

The Washington Post has a four-page article on the Wingman. Only one wingman? Amateurs! In high school and college, I was a member of wingteams. Via Wonkette, Gawker, and the Washington Post.

I had a wingteam in high school. We would go out in teams of three or five. Three to five guys together looks less desperate than two guys lurking.

Let’s say there are only two cute girls. The three guys move in and engage, making one another look funny and cool. One guy is predestined to disappear into the night after things gel. In a team of three or five, there is a simple system of “dibs” sometimes used, although most often the most senior, the most cool, or the most alpha come first while the newest, youngest, or lamest is predestined to break off.

Calling dibs is a serious business when men go out — very serious — and breaking dibs is a serious offense that may result in getting drummed out of the team, also known as “being excommunicated.” Dibs last as long as the the dibsholder likes. We men are never catty and rarely fight over women to say nothing of backstabbing or stealing someone elses dib (of course, it is open season outside of the team).

A single wingman? How pathetic. When I was in high school and college, going out was an orchestrated mission with strategy, with tactics, and with easily-definable goals with success and failure metrics and defined exit strategies.

Women didn’t have a chance.

Yes, I did write Petroleum Oil An Organic Renewable Resource. Wouldn’t it be funny if oil prices were based on a false economy, a false scarcity, like diamonds?

What if oil were as plentiful and as easy to harness as compost? That the environmentalists are unwitting dupes who actually fuel inflated oil prices as an unintended consequence of crying “the sky is falling, the sky is falling.”

All markets desperately try to keep their product from being commoditized; or, they push to restrict production (a false scarcity) until profits stabilize (as in, become more profitable).

Commoditization kills profit margins.

Creating a sense of scarcity allows profits to improve just based on simple fear. And there is no end to where it can be ultimately pushed if the market is willing to remain flexible. Take agribusiness. Subsidies are not about paying farmers not to farm, it is about gaming the commodities market so that wheat is either easier to sell or more profitable to produce.

Let’s look at the diamond market.

This from Mark del Bianco when I popped him an IM looking for the world “false scarcity,” “DeBeers (South Africa) and the Russians have conspired to keep the worldwide supply low. The US DOJ has chased DeBeers for years on antitrust cases. DeBeers has to avoid the U.S. for that reason. They sell outside US.”

Same with oil. If you can push the profts of oil for a little while — or until the market fails or, more realistically, corrects itself — you can bring lots of other markets along for the ride, including precious metals (especially gold). It can be a real boon for the commodities broker and his brokerage.

I was moved to discuss this based both Anthony Citrano’s article, The Coming Islamic Superpowers?, and a missive I published from an unnamed journalist in an undisclosed location who had an interesting chat with a retired general, So a Retired General Walks up to a Journalist in a Bar….

So, this morning I go back to follow up on The Coming Islamic Superpowers? (thanks for the link, Anthony) and am happy to see some wonderful comments so I add my own:

Everything is ties together. Gold is flying as high as oil. Copper, too. The Chicago exchange is having a hayday. Don’t just look at who is making money on oil, look also at who is making money on contracts, on services, on shipping, and on commodities. That is where it is fun to look.

Follow the money.

Harry is right. Sustainable energy is just stealing from Peter to pay Paul.

It will aid the individuals who are early adopters, but when these initiatives become national or global solutions, there will be just the sort of blowback that Harry mentions.

The market is too smart — and is too interconnected — to fall for the “sustainable energy” solution.

Oh, and there is way too much money to be made to let the whole sustainable energy market become institutionalized. Agribusiness can ignore a lot of backyard personal gardens — can suffer them without the flattening of growth — but when the point of pain happens, then agribusiness might not be so kind.

The important thing to try to do is to find a replacement profit center for these investors — sort of a methadone — who are now invested in fossil fuel.

Organics worked for agribusiness. What will the methadone be for energy?

What do you think?

Rank (by citation count): 1268
Inbound Links: 26 from 26 source(s)
Inbound Links (avg. per week): 6
Inbound Links (avg. per month): 26
Post Count: 373
Post Frequency (per week): 38
Post Frequency (per month): 164
Via BlogPulse2RSS

This morning, in the office, I overheard a conversation about real estate that went like this, “I am tired of my condo but I can’t afford anthing else until I find a sugar daddy.”

It was the third time in the last 24-hours that I have heard this from Washington, DC, women in their mid-thirties. And the third time about real estate, too.

But there are other contexts I have heard this said, including “I will get married when I find myself a sugar daddy who will allow me to quit my job and be a mom,” “I just want myself a sugar daddy who can take me on exotic trips,” “I am waiting for a sudar daddy who can afford to keep me in the lifestyle to which I have become accustomed.”

That’s pretty tough and pretty intimidating. What’s worse, these girls mean it, which is why these beautiful women who would never consider being with anyone but a cute, single, available man have now ever-expanding pools. They’re even dating their dads, so-to-speak.

But it is one of the primary reasons why we 30-something men in Washington, DC, refuse to date our peers. Because our peers refuse to date us.

Primarily, we can’t — we’re generally not good enough for them. They want wealthy men who can take care of them, and they’re willing to date and marry their fathers and rich uncles in order to do it. They’re unwilling past their 20s to invest in a man’s future, they want it now and in someone who has already proven his mettle.

So, the same woman who at 25 would really not date anyone older than 30 is now 35 and will date just about anyone as long as he can afford her: 35-55, divorced, separated, widowed, with kids and an ex-wife.

Like I mentioned before, “married is the new separated, separated is the new divorced, and divorced is the new single.”

I asked a 35-year-old woman of great beauty and success about this and I was told, “Chris, a 35-year-old man, are at the very young edge of my dating pool. Most men in the pool are above forty, have been married, have kids, and don’t know if they want to have any more.”

But I don’t believe it hook, line, and sinker. Realistically, most men in their 40s are at their peak earning potential. And men in their 50s who have a similar socio-economic profile as ours are arrived and wealthy and if divorced (or a cheater) really excited about those 35-year-old spring chickens.

Well, I want my 30-something women back! Sadly, I am going to give up the ghost and realize that we 30-something Washingtonian men are just not yet good enough for you as partners, husbands, fathers, and, alas, sugar daddies.

Sigh.

I discovered Apartment Keepers, my cleaning service, on Craigslist over a year ago and have been sane ever since.

As a Washington, DC, maid service, its fire and release.

I get the gang into my pad four-times-a-month, which is mostly weekly. They’re affordable, with my apartment working out to about $44.75-a-week.

They do a very good job and when I come home on Wednesday evening, my bed is made, the place is immaculate, and smells lightly of heaven.

One day while I was waiting for the Covad guy to come by and install my DSL I met the Apartment Keepers president, Daniel A. Simon. His Apartment Keepers is growing like stinkweeds.

He told me that the real missing piece in Washington is that young whippersnappers with loads of cash but no time end up wasting the time they do have with cleaning their pads and not using them as a place for recouperation and rest.

I am a mess and this indeeds keeps me sane. Although sometimes I do have a little bit of trouble mainting the place week-to-week, my Wednesday nights are indeed all about the R&R.

OCD packrats need not apply.

Oh, and the coolest thing is Daniel is all about the technology and it is possible to take care of the entire service sign up, all the follow-up, and everything short of getting them your house key, online.

We high-tech, a-type, over-earners and under players hate making phone calls and would just love to fire and release.

In the Apartment Keepers model, the housekeeping is a subscription service.

And I have to offer up this testimonial with glee. I just love it and it is indeed a permanent line-item in my budget.

Enjoy my complete coverage with The Nicole Richie Diet, Nicole Richie is Wasting Away Beautifully, Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, Who Knows Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, LEAVE NICOLE RICHIE ALONE !!!!, I Love Nicole I Want to Look Like Her, Any Suggestions?, and Nicole Richie is Just Not Eating. Enjoy!

Nicole Richie Coverage: Nicole Richie’s Workout, Nicole Richie’s Diet, Comprehensive Nicole Richie Diet Coverage, To the Richies: What the Hell is an Eating Coach?, The Nicole Richie Diet, Most Popular Articles on ChrisAbraham.com

Nicole Richie is Wasting Away Beautifully, The Only Reason I Blog: The Continuing Nicole Richie Saga, Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, Who Knows Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, LEAVE NICOLE RICHIE ALONE !!!!, Nicole Richie is Just Not Eating is Most Commented Article, I Love Nicole I Want to Look Like Her, Any Suggestions?, Nicole Richie is Just Not Eating

“Lionel Richie is so concerned over his scary skinny daughter Nicole’s health that he has hired her an eating coach, reports the new issue of In Touch Weekly.” Via OH NO!

Enjoy my complete coverage with The Nicole Richie Diet, Nicole Richie is Wasting Away Beautifully, Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, Who Knows Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, LEAVE NICOLE RICHIE ALONE !!!!, I Love Nicole I Want to Look Like Her, Any Suggestions?, and Nicole Richie is Just Not Eating. Enjoy!

Nicole Richie Coverage: Nicole Richie’s Workout, Nicole Richie’s Diet, Comprehensive Nicole Richie Diet Coverage, To the Richies: What the Hell is an Eating Coach?, The Nicole Richie Diet

Most Popular Articles on ChrisAbraham.com, Nicole Richie is Wasting Away Beautifully, The Only Reason I Blog: The Continuing Nicole Richie Saga, Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, Who Knows Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, LEAVE NICOLE RICHIE ALONE !!!!, Nicole Richie is Just Not Eating is Most Commented Article, I Love Nicole I Want to Look Like Her, Any Suggestions?, Nicole Richie is Just Not Eating

From a lovely and helpful reader of this blog, Bree, in the comments section of Who Knows Nicole Richie’s Diet Regimen, “OK here it is all those looking for Nicole’s Diet, I havent tried it yet but Im definitly going to!!! hope this helps….” Thanks Bree!

Nicole appears to be shrinking before our eyes. The 23-year-old has hit the gym with a vengeance (2+ hours a day) and now weighs an astonishing 91 stone.

The Diet
Breakfast: 2 Egg Whites; 1 Scoop of Protein Powder mixed with Water.
Lunch: 4oz. Chicken, Mixed Greens, 1c. Orange Juice
Dinner: 4oz. Fish, Steamed Veggies
Dessert: Fruit

The Workout
1 Hour Weight training
90 Minutes of High Impact Cardio
…….although they say……..
Her recent transformation is a prime example of how drastically a balanced diet and increased physical activity can change a person’s appearance. Nicole exercises four times a week and does something different during each session. Besides integral training (cardio and weight work combined) the newly svelte starlet likes to use the indo board for balance and leg work. Furthermore, according to her trainer Adam Estner, “Richie now eats more food than before, but she eats the right kind.???

When oral sex is perceived as more casual and less intimate than a first kiss, there is going to be blowback, namely that oral sex will be understood as “not cheating.”

A married man or woman would be safe to receive or offer oral sex to someone outside of the marriage and still technically not be having sex outside the marriage.

I already know loads of men who have had “the talk” with their girlfriends — sexual history — and, like a scene from Clerks, oral sex is not included in sexual history. Oral sex is just casual and only Intercourse is included. We men hate that. Of course, yes: its a double standard. That said, when we find out how much inconsequential head has been graced, we go a little nuts. We also have discovered a loophole we can drive a 747 through: oral sex is not cheating! If we are apart or if the opporunity avails, we can receive a “gift” whenever we want and its really nobody’s business.

Male logic: “So, if a blowjob isn’t sex to my girlfriend it means that I can get blowjobs all night long and its cool. Fucking A!”

The blowback, of course, is that few partners in Holy wedlock would consider this behavior as honoring the vows of marriage. I think few boyfriend-girlfriend pairs would be cool with it were it to come clean, either.

The normalization — or cheapening — of very intimate contact with men and women outside of a partnership can be nothing but destructive to “conventional” monogamous relationships — even when the acts are technically “legal.”

To be honest, I don’t know many men or women who are okay with a partner who snuggles with someone else. One might say that snuggling and kissing are very intimate and that a blowjob is just an impersonal act and sometimes a cigar is just a cigar (you know, men just need to get off, you know).

Well, HPV (genital warts) and herpes aside, its not nothing!

Kissing, holding, touching, and stroking are all intimate acts. Giving and receiving oral sex to the Euros is actually considered more intimate than Intercourse. Kissing, fucking, sucking, blowing, and masturbation are all very intimate acts. And to consider their effects on our lives and our hearts longterm to be nominal is very dangerous.

When it comes to affairs of the body between two people, same sex or boy-girl, all interactions are important. As a result, it is immensely important to guard your heart.

The best way to guard your heart is to always put yourself into the other person’s shoes. I have done far from a good job of doing this myself and have found myself painting myself into all sorts of corners — corners I would have not been in had I taken a second to consider my effect on the world. My world: my lovers, my friends, my family, and especially the friends and acquantences who would love to be my lover and the friends and acquantences I would love to love. It is never a good idea to take advantage — to be an opportunist. “Just because you can” is never a good reason to do anything. If you want to experience severe Karmic blowback just toy with someone’s heart, take advantage, just do shit. If you really want to have your Karmic savings trashed, say things like “its all fair on love and war,” we’re both adults,” “she knew what she was getting into,” “it was just a one-night stand and she should have known what it was,” “he should have been mature enough to know what it was.”

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, both when protecting your heart and your soul; when it comes to herpes, AIDS, human papillomavirus (HPV) infection (genital warts), syphilis, chlamydia, gonorrhea, hepatitis, and trichomoniasis, an ounce of prevention is worth a ton of cure.

Or since I know better the heart and the soul than I did in my 20s, maybe its the other way around: an ounce of prevention is worth a ton of cure.

Amen.

The moment I start ordering merchandise from The Sharper Image is the moment I have truly arrived. Its all stuff you don’t need but want, as a guy.