U Weight Loss

ummm, so I heard this commercial online for weight loss & lately I haven't been sleeping very well - but the alarm clock is still set for 7:30 am  (note:  this is actually not correct... every time I set my alarm clock, or the clock in my car, after the time is set accurately - I close my eyes & hold the minute button for a random amount of time!!)  hehe.   This sets my clock ahead a few minutes... but an UNKNOWN few minutes... so I am forced to obey it, cause it might be 10 mins fast, or it might just be 2 mins fast!!  Who know???  :P 

lol - also this strategy only works if you avoid looking at this clock directly after looking at the correct time (on your computer, cell phone, etc) & vis versa.. hehe, I know - whacko!!  But HEY - it works for me!!

Anyways, back to U Weight Loss...  So I google them, check them out - seems like a professional website, so I shoot off an email.  They reply back by 10am - tell me to come in for a free "Healthy Weight Assessment"... hmmm, I smell scam; but no harm, no foul! 

I set up two appointments - one at location A for 5:30, another at location B for 6:45.  I work late & work can be unpredictable at times...  Either way, I miss the 5:30, cause I leave work then - but decide to hit up the gym!!  [ Oh, this was motivated by the fact I read online reviews talking about how these systems are scams & they don't refund your money & blah, blah ] - so I'm skeptical...  Hence Gym - cause, nothing comes for free!! 

Either way, gym workout was light - cause I recently incurred rotator cuff tendinitous :(  But then by the time I finished, it was 6:25 - so I figure no harm right?

The receptionist was cute!!  Tall, Blonde, Thin!!  Nerdy.... just the way I like them ;-)  She does an interview, then outlines the program... it's a total speel!! But very casual - no pressure!!  Was kind of surprised... then she started talking about pricing & the 'mandatory supplements'.  I put a hault to that!!  I'm not down with that artificial shit!!  And from what I can tell - that stuff is where they make their key profit margins; and it's also the stuff with the most potential of health side effects..

I'm a smart dude, so I'm like eff that shit!!  She's like:  'without the supplements, their is not money back guarantee'.  I said oh well...  My time is worth more than the money, so it's either I lose weight - or I don't!!  There are not true guarantees in life!!  And anyone who believes otherwise is a sucker!!

So I told her I'd sign up for the program, minus the supplements.  She tried to convince me otherwise, but wasn't pushy.  Then came the 'contract signing'.  At first she tried to spread the payments across 12 months.  Made sense, because as a finance major:  'it is in your best interest to pay things later (i.e. right before they are due), than to pay in advance'.  Time Value of Money baby ;-) 

But I read the fine print... fine print is:  U Weight Loss is owned by a Finance (parent) company.  They pay the bills, but you are in a contract with the parent for monthly payments.  (ahhhh, I see - just did the math 21% interest on monthly financing charges... hmmm).  Anyways, I'm like scratch that!!  I'll pay up front.

(I'd rather pay up front, than finance through a sketchy parent company with strings attached).

Either way, I figure for about $800 for 4+ months can't hurt.  I spent $150 on alcohol last weekend :|  So might as well drop some cash on a counsellor to manage my weight / track my progress - give me some damn ACCOUNTABILITY!! 

That being said, wouldn't be so bad to see that cute receptionist 'Megan' once a week ;-)  lol

Stay tuned... GajCo goes on a diet!!

A "White Man's World"..

It's a harsh statement / title... but after this week, I can't help but out pour it...

Thursday

I walk into the legal court room.  There stands a prosecutor, walking in & out, fumbling with her notes, frantically trying to get her shit together... 

I sit there in the corner, suited up:  dress shirt & tie.  Fresh-to-death, with a professional tone..  Preparing my arguments, my notes, my defense for a charge so frivolous it was partially humorous.  She asks for a highlighter, I offer my own - but am ignored, as if my words were not loud enough.  I see - I get it now, you are one side, I am another...

Other defendants walk in... she attacks each one of them.  She tells each of them - they are guilty & there is no point of coming to court unless they want to waste money on a lawyer and pay the excessive maximum penalty.  After this occurs 2 or 3 times, I realize a pattern.  Each of these defendants can barely speak any english, let alone able to defend themselves...  She preys on them...  My anger builds...

She walks the court room, seeking some funny last name - butchered beyond believe.  I raise my voice:  Pronounce my Last Name Correctly.  Stand up, a youthful looking defendant - no fear in my eyes.

She asks to see my current license - states it is good, she is willing to reduce my penalty from $5000 to $2000 per offense if I were to plead guilty... I look her in the eyes & say:  NO.  Thank you for showing me, where the test of your lines are in terms of the penalty...  But I know this case is so frivolous, for me to bow down would be pathetic...

A Black Judge walks in.  Sits down, calls my name:  First & Last, pronounced correctly.  Yet, prosecution butchers my name yet again...

Don't try to bully me bitch!!  I'm not the type to be bullied!  I can stand up for myself & I will not shy away from going on the offensive - so watch out...

Yet, I cannot help but be mystified by her lack of respect for my name... her ability to take advantage of immigrants who could barely speak english, to influence them to plead out...


We live in a world prioritized by the "White Man", with white man biases & immigrant stereotypes..  It angers me, because we are a fool to think that biases do not exist in the world.  But alas.. time & time again, I must remind myself:  "Life is not Fair... Deal with it!"

Good Things Happen to People Who Wait?!

Well, good or bad - we'll see.. 

Just found out (well, I could have guessed from this week's events) that my co-worker has given notice to leave the firm, just after about 1 year...  He started about 2 weeks before me, and although 1 year is enough time to put on your resume - I don't think I would have bailed so early..

I can't say that I plan to be in my position for very long into my future, but I think I've put a marker in the sand for 2012 summer/spring...

Needless to say, my financial woes have subsided - a big financing deal I've been working on the last few months has finally closed & sealed as of this week.  It's great because it free's up some cash flow going forward - though, it reverts my initial game plan of being "debt free" by the end of 2011.  Instead, it looks like that will happen late 2012 if anything.. 

It all depends on my tax deductibles for next year.  Nearly all my education credits dwindled, my salary increased; so unless the numbers change - it looks like next year will see me pay an increase amount of taxes from previous.. (though too early to tell, and I do have a significant RRSP limit / allowance)...

But it's funny, for someone my age - I've done fairly well for myself.  And the key is:  I practically did it by myself!!  Not a single handout (unless of course you include - and you must include - being able to leverage my parent's credit, support, and temporary emergency loan bail outs...) - especially thanks to my father's anti-handout policy... I've had to earn every single cent for myself.  *but I wouldn't have it any other way*.

I've put a lot of pressure on myself in the past... to succeed has been my primary goal.  And looking back, I feel I have achieved.  Question is:  who have I achieved for?!  Or more so, who is there to share my achievements?!

I think my parents are finally proud of my achievements - but it took me nearly 29 years to achieve that!!

I was talking to my 'little sis' last night, and she pointed out - how precisely a year ago, I was going through one of the roughest times / periods of my life.  It rivaled if not exceeded my internal turmoil of 2007/2008.  2009/2010 was definitely a humbling low...  but I held on - held strong.  Never gave up / Never quit. 

Walked away from people - yes.  Walked away from Toronto.  The ethnic 'Community'.  Friends, or some I used to call friends - now acquaintances.  Even lost ties with a few close friends of 2007 through 2009.

In the end, I was / am - just left with me.  Happy with my achievements, but curious what the point of further achievements would be?!  ...

Good things happen to people who wait it out... so the question is, we'll see what happens as I wait it out ;-)

Now back to bed!!

Restful Weekend...

I did absolutely nothing this weekend!!  It's interesting... because I haven't spoken a single word to anyone except / other than my parents...  It seems like a reoccuring theme this last year.  I've been so self-focused, so isolated - nearly all my free time is spent solo... 

I wonder if I am purposefully disassociating myself from people because of my anger or disappointment in them...  Or if I truely just needed some solo - 'self' time for me to enjoy..

As time flies by, it seems like I dive deeper & deeper into my 'rabbit hole'.  It makes me question:  should I be out there seeking further companionship?  why am I on this ever lasting goal to 'succeed'?  for what, I have already achieved everything I need to live a complacent / simple life.

Am I so focused on building a 'chuck-bass' lifestyle, that I've lost sight of everything else?! 

A Community Divided..

I worked really hard to unity the community... Through the blood drive campaigns, a non-profit organiation that was close to my heart. I drove like no other - and in the end, I walked away because of pride?! Because of the lack of respect / acknowledgement? ... no, I don't think so... because the lack of time & re-focused commitment. (shoot, that is the title of this "chapter" isn't it?!) Self-Focused.

I guess I gave up my "Community Focus"; because I had worked so hard for it & I started to see the faltering cracks building up along the edges of the community. I think the insult from the Mix 'n' Mingle, the insult from the awards recognition - kind of threw me over the top to not care so much about other peoples needs anymore (at least, not to care about their needs over my own)...

Feb. 2010 was very molding for me... I took control of my life again at that point. Since then, I have made many significant achievements... Some people make similar achievements once every few years - but not me... I sealed a $35,000 investment deal. (Or should I say divestment deal). I knocked my career out of the park, at least from ground level - now positioning me to focus on my next major endeavour. I travelled the world, from London to Dublin to Paris & even Amsterdam. It was one of the most spectacular trips I had ever taken, rivaling my time in California..

Now my eyes focused on the next 12 months ahead... as I hit that 30 year milestone, the completion of 1/3rd of my lifespan (if so every lucky..). I wonder if I will ever be able to travel in space by that time?! Wow, the wonders of what the next 60 years could have instore for me...

Today, I spoke to an old friend. Regional manager of the blood drive program for central ontario. It was good to hear his voice, shoot the shit. He asked me for my opinion on cultural matters. I told him, what his plans were, were in fact ideal. But it's too bad... those plans were quite different from the goal that I had envisioned as a volunteer.

I had hoped the community would have united. I had hoped that we would have evolved into intellects & not "rebels with a cause". But in life, you cannot control everything. You can only do what you think is right & let the world cards fall as they may..

Money Matters..

Wow!!  I was drunk & ugly when I wrote that last post!!  Good thing I didn't do anything stupid!! lol.

I guess, I've just been really frustrated lately at work...  Feeling that I'm over worked & under appreciated.  The former I don't mind... the latter is a bit of a piss off.. 

And my finances... my finances are golden compared to many - self-taught, self-earned, well qualified...  but it's not, or never really enough for me!  I'm always striving for "bigger & better"... lol, I do it with alcohol, women, money & food...  my eyes are bigger than my hands, mouth, and more..

I woke up last night & I realized / told myself... listen:  if the financing deal that you're working on - doesn't pan out.... it's okay - you are still in great financial health.  If the deal were to go through, I'd be in even better financial health - but that's a completely different story!! 

The fact is:  I'm on my way to financial independence - but I'm always trying to "speed up the pace".  *Right Now* is never any good enough for me... this is a problem.  It causes me to jump jobs, women, business strategies...

I need to start caring about the "here & now" ... but till then, there is always tomorrow & tomorrow is a rather big day for me...