I Love Cooking, But Eating Is Killing Me!

I am cooking and cleaning up a storm nowadays.  I have more energy than I have had in several years.  I enjoy cooking because it brings such pleasure to so many people.  I have become convinced that eating is going to kill me though.  I feel like I am having a heart attack right after eating many meals and then the run to the bathroom to revisit that which just went down is becoming old.  I know I have to get the slower eating thin under control or I will not take in any calories a day.  Last week I had 3 days where I was less than 500 calories a day because most of it came up.

Today I bought protein bars for the first time.  They taste like cardboard, BUT, they are necessary because I am not getting all of the daily protein needs.  I hate spending money on protein bars, but I would like to keep the little bit of hair that I currently have.  Without protein, I will lose my hair in a month or so because of the lack of protein.  I am going to be eating out6 meals this week.  I am scared to do it because of the possibility to seeing my hard earned money come right back up and be wasted before it nourishes me.  Just one of those things, learning to live with a tool which makes you respect food and treat it like a necessity and not a glutinous pleasure.

CastMaster Ministries Financial and Spiritual Impact

I have not written much about CastMaster Ministries in a  while and today I plan to change that.  We have been doing more behind the sceens planning and developing of our major project, The Retreat.  The Retreat is a 1000 bed resort-style Christian Conference and Retreat Center to be located in Central Texas.  Below are our financial and spiritual impact statements.

1. Total Financial Investment need is $40,000,000.
2. We will have to hire 100 contractors and subcontractors for over 18 months for construction and finish of the project.
3. The project will put just over $40,000,000 into the local economy through the construction and finishing of the 325,000 sqf at $125/sqf.  The economy of the local community will have improved infrastructure that will establish an improved economy to the local communities in the area.  A vastly improved infrastructure will greatly benefit the local community in ways that will allow the local community to be involved in the economy of The Retreat.
4. Our financial projects over the first 6 years projects over 50 full time employees and 100 part-time employees with an economic impact of payroll exceeding $18,000,000 as well as providing over $3,525,000 in benefits.  Our financial projections over the first 10 years projects 60 full time employees and 130 part-time employees with an economic impact of payroll exceeding $30,000,000 as well as providing over $6,525,000 in benefits. 
5. Our financial projects over the first 6 years projects over $68,000,000 in direct investment into the local economy through general expenditures.  Our financial projections over the first 10 years projects over $150,000,000 in direct investment into the local economy through general expenditures. 
6. Our financial impact in the local economy over the first 10 years of operation will be the initial $40,000,000 investment in infrastructure, $36,000,000 in payroll and benefits, with an additional $150,000,000 in general expenditures.  The projected economic impact in the local economy by CastMaster Ministries during its first 10 years will exceed $236,000,000.

Events for 10 Years	Weeklong Camps	Weekend Camps	Total for 10 Years
Campers	300,000	350,000	650,000
Become Christians	15,000	17,500	32,500
Recommitment in Faith	40,000	48,000	88,000
Called into Full Time Ministry	425	500	925
Marriages Saved	600	700	1,300

If you would like to find out more about CastMaster Ministries or The Retreat, contact me at jimmiekersh@castmastercamp.com 

 

Officially Down 50

Today I want to thank Dr Welborne and his incredible staff at the Welborne Clinic in Little Rock, Arkansas.  As I jumped on my scales this morning, I weiged 273 which means I am now officially down 50 lbs since October 30th.  The Lap Band is a great tool that has allowed me to continue to lose weight without being hungry in the least. 

I am still learning to deal with the Lap Band’s tightness.  I have been used to shoveling food in for years and year, about 45 of them.  Since I am still learning, I am more convinced than ever that the life change that is happening is teaching me how to have a more healthy lifestyle.  Eat slow, talk while you are eating and eat smaller bites are the essentials of living with this tool which was implanted in my tummy.  Thanks again Dr Wellborne and Leslie.

Closing Down the Lap Band

What a week.  The lap band is gradually getting smaller and so is my ability to eat.  I am having to learn to slow down and eat MUCH smaller bites.  Old habits dies hard and yes, negative reinforcement does change bad habits.  Spending a few minutes bent over the toilet feeling like you are having a heart attack only to see what you just ate come back into sight makes for a dramatic negative effect.

Yes, life is getting slower around the dining table and slow is very good.  God is blessing this tool though and allowing me to officially be down 45 lbs now.  Probably time for pics soon, but the camera is on the fritz.  Hopefully in a few days we will be posting a few pics to go along with this journey.

Latest Lap Band Update

Wow, what a challenging three weeks.  THe band is really changing my life currently.  I do not find myself to be hungry except in the later nights hours.  When I try to eat withe the family at normal meal times, I can only eat 5 to 6 very small bites.  I have been eating larger bites and they are resurfacing after a heart attack feeling lasting about 2 minutes.  I called the Dr today to get some advice and they told me to eat one bite per minute and the bites need to be about the size of my pinky finger-nail.  That really does change how I feel about food.  I am now heading toward 43 pounds lost.  I am feeling more energetic and feel great physically.  I am doing more every day than the day before and I am really feeling like a 20 year old, my wife does not like that part of it.

THe most important thing I would say about these last few weeks is that I have not quite adjusted to the new feeling and now I am getting a new adjustment on Monday.  I am pretty sure I am going to have more trouble over the next few weeks learning how to eat even less while not really being hungry throughout the day.  I also cook for the family and I used to taste test everything and eat half of what I was cooking before meal time.  Now I do one taste when the food i about to be served.  I have even caome to the point where I do not even season food for the family any more so I do not have to taste the food.  I let them season it themselves on their plates.  I know it is not the best thing for the cook to do to his family, but if I have a small taste, I am stuffed before I sit down to eat and then it makes me feel bad for not eating with the family.

I can never say thank you enough to Dr Wellborne and his staff for giving me my life back.  This surgery is bringing me back to the man I always see in the mirrow, the 18 year old going off to college for the first time.  I know I am not 18 any more, but I am starting to feel like it which beats the 65 years old I felt before the surgery.

Had Second Fill

Wow, 2 CCs of water makes a huge difference in the lap band.  after my first fill, I was still able to eat about anything I wanted and about as much as I wanted.  Not the same after 2nd fill.  Wednesday night I had chicken breast and a small one at that and was able to eat 2/3’s of it.  I hurt so bad after finishing the 2/3’s that I was bent over in pain and felt like i needed to vomit.  It hung in my throat for about 2 – 3 minutes and I finally had to take a small sip of water to try to moisten the food to let it slide down some.  That was also the wrong idea, it just put water on top of hte food in my stomack and made me feel even worse.

Yesterday I went to a local steak house and had their hot food buffett.  I had cour chicken livers and half a roll.  The chicken livers would have been plenty.  The half of a roll at the end was way too much.  Again, bent over in pain, but this time tears were running down my face and they would not stop.  Oh, my I think I know what a heart attack feals like and it does not feel good.  THat was at 12:30 and I did not eat again until just before 10:00 pm and it was just a piece of smoked cheddar and a piece of genoa salami.  At midnight I had 6 cocktail weenies and did not have the horrible feeling.

Yes, all of this is normal with the lap band.  I am having to re-learn to eat normally instead of all the bad habits I picked up along the last 45 years.  The lap band is a tool that WILL force me to not eat as much food and therefor allow me to meet my weightloss goals.

Here is the weigh-in from this morning: 283, officially down 40 lbs.  Happy New Year to my belly button.  I hope to be losing another 40 in the next two months, but that will not happen, it will take about 3 months to lose the next 40.  By the end of March I plan on being down to 243 which is by the way the lowest I will have weighed in over 20 years.  I am so looking forward to the end of March.  Woo Woo.

The Tyranny of Ignorance

A republic is not sustainable without a well educated public.  Maybe a republic should protect itself from ignorance by protecting itself from the votes of the chronically ignorant.  Ignorant people are uninformed people and within a republic, the uninformed are too ignorant for the republic to survive if their suffrage is allowed.  The ignorance of the uninformed should not be rewarded with right of suffrage for their ignorance is detrimental to the republic in general. 

How is this ignorance manifest one may ask?  First, this ignorance is manifest in the inability to appropriately identify the following officeholders and their political affiliation: President of the United States; Vice President of the United States, The two United States Senators from their state; Their United States Representative and the Governor of their state.  It is clear that a person who is uninformed concerning these officeholders is not informed enough to be able to vote for federally elected officials.

Second, this ignorance is manifest in the inability to appropriately define the following political phrases and terms and to understand their meaning: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness; Private Property; Freedom of Religion; Tyranny and Freedom.

Third, this ignorance is manifest in the inability to appropriately define Capitalism; Socialism; Communism; Free Markets; Debt; Deficit; Individual Responsibility and Slavery to the State.

How did uneducated men like Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Jay, Franklin, Hamilton and Adams have complete understanding of the above terms and phrases and the publically educated masses of Americans not have a literate understanding of the same?  How could it be possible that the uneducated masses at the time of the Civil War have a complete understanding of the above terms and phrases while few today that are under forty are able to do the same with their years of public education and college?

If the masses today are ignorant and uninformed perhaps it was intentionally perpetrated against them from the socialistic progressives from the late 1890’s and the early 1900’s.  The intention of the progressives was and is to destroy the Judeo-Christian philosophy and work ethic and replace it with the progressive’s credo: To each according to his needs, from each according to his ability.  The Communistic mantra of Hegel and Marx is the basis of the progressive’s beliefs and planning.  The worldview or belief system of the progressive is diametrically opposed to the worldview of the Founding Fathers and their Founding Documents.

The ignorance today is the end result of the progressives amassing their philosophical principles and teachings into the public educational system in the early 1900’s.  The usurpation of the public educational system was the brainchild of the early progressive, John Dewey.  Dewey, after traveling to Europe to study communist philosophy, determined to bring Communistic Socialism to the people of the United States.  He determined that the only way to overcome the current philosophy of the Judeo-Christian work ethic, rugged individualism and the capitalistic economic system was to retrain children in the public educational system.  Dewey determined that the best way to overtake the public educational system was to take over the college teacher training schools.  He and his progressive colleagues were determined to take the slow but sure path to taking over the minds of the children who would eventually become parents who would continue to allow their children to be indoctrinated into the progressive worldview.

In less than five generations, Dewey’s plans have become a success.  The masses are now so dumbed-down through the philosophical mindlessness of the progressives that the ignorance of the masses is now so commonplace that it is accepted as normal.  The progressive socialism of today has destroyed the ability of children and their parents to understand where this country came from, and what it was to a world in need of freedom and liberty.  Progressivism has now become so dominant in the worldview of most Americans under the age of forty are unable to demonstrate basic knowledge of our Founding Fathers and the Founding Documents.  Their demonstrated ignorance fails the basic concepts of citizenship for an educated public.

How can a society so debased from its educational system continue as well informed society?  Why should uninformed masses determine the future of the most influential country in the history of the world?  The ultimate question must finally be asked.  Is it in the best interest of the United States of America to allow universal suffrage to the undereducated, ignorant masses?  Our Founders would not have allowed the uninformed, ignorant masses to have the right of suffrage.  They believed the informed alone should be granted suffrage.

We should not revert to a poll tax, but we should require citizens to be tested to determine if they are educated or ignorant of our political system and the basic Constitutional principles which govern our country.  I am now asking the question and it is now time to take serious the reality of what socialistic progressivism has done to our country over the last 110 years.

A Christmas Address From A Real American President

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UU0tuah-x7M

Merry Christmas!  May the eternal love of the Creator of the universe change your life forever.

Healthcare Constitutional Challenge

 The Healthcare Bill in the Senate can be challenged constitutionally in at least three different areas.

1.)  Article 1 Section 8 Clause 3: To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes.  Paine, Jay and Hamilton ALL proclaimed that this clause was to make regular the commerce among the several states, NOT to regulate the commerce between the several states.

2.) The Fourteenth Amendment: By granting Nebraska continuous exemption from Medicaid Taxes, Nebraskans are receiving unequal protection and Arkansans are also receiving unequal protection as well as violating Article 1 Section 8 Clause 3 to make regular commerce between the states.

3.) The Supreme Court Ruling in Rowe V. Wade that forbids the use of Federal Funds to pay for abortions.  Since the Senate bill allows for the co-mingling of Federal and private funds, it is impossible to separate the funds and therefore is in violation of the Ruling.

While there are going to be numerous other areas of challenge, these three should be enough to acquire an injunction to forbid it going into law.

Blanche Lincoln Will Vote to Allow Co-Mingling of Federal Funds for Abortions

I just spoke with Blanche Lincoln’s office in Little Rock.  Her aide said she WILL vote for cloture with the allowance of abortion language.  She voted agains the Nelson Amendment to limit any federal funding on abortion.  She will vote to allow the co-mingling of federal funds to allow abortions.

I forgot to ask under what part of the Constitution does she recieve power to implement federal government mandated healthcare.  Since it is not provided for anywhere within the confines of Article 1 Section 8, I do not believe she has a constitutional right.