Pillow Fight Party @ The Tavern.

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:07:54 -0600

This is what happens when you party @ The Tavern.

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:07:25 -0600

This is what happens when you party @ The Tavern.

Ninja VS Pirate party @ The Tavern.

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 00:06:49 -0600

Ninja VS Pirate party @ The Tavern.

I tried making Nikki’s Bettie Page tattoo come alive.

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:24:53 -0600

I tried making Nikki’s Bettie Page tattoo come alive.

Photo

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:23:45 -0600

Nikki at her wedding.

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:21:43 -0600

Nikki at her wedding.

Nephew at the park.

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:14:42 -0600

Nephew at the park.

I tried my hand at gardening. These poor newly-bought plants had...

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:04:13 -0600

I tried my hand at gardening. These poor newly-bought plants had no idea that in a few weeks, they’d be dead.

Photo

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:03:17 -0600

The Ferris Wheel at The Wharf in Gulf Shoes, AL

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:02:43 -0600

The Ferris Wheel at The Wharf in Gulf Shoes, AL

A bicycle in the French Quarter. The streets are so small,...

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 19:51:45 -0600

A bicycle in the French Quarter. The streets are so small, it’s best to use a small European import car, scooter, or bike if you aren’t going to travel by foot.

A butterfly in a hole in the wood of an old one-room schoolhouse...

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 19:32:15 -0600

A butterfly in a hole in the wood of an old one-room schoolhouse on my family’s ancestral land.

My 1990 CRX Si (with my tag blurred out, thank you very much),...

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 19:23:34 -0600

My 1990 CRX Si (with my tag blurred out, thank you very much), next to the Sentra and Sunfire.

Hood of my 2006 Nissan Sentra Spec-V SE-R

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 19:18:00 -0600

Hood of my 2006 Nissan Sentra Spec-V SE-R

Ferris Wheel #1, MS State Fair, 2011

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 12:43:14 -0500

Ferris Wheel #1, MS State Fair, 2011

Ferris Wheel @ MS State Fair, 2011

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 12:37:13 -0500

Ferris Wheel @ MS State Fair, 2011

Fight childhood obesity

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 19:36:00 -0500

Approximately 17% (or 12.5 million) of children and adolescents aged 2—19 years are obese.
Since 1980, obesity prevalence among children and adolescents has almost tripled.
There are significant racial and ethnic disparities in obesity prevalence among U.S. children and adolescents. In 2007—2008, Hispanic boys, aged 2 to 19 years,were significantly more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic white boys, and non-Hispanic black girls were significantly more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic white girls.

Obesity is among the easiest medical conditions to recognize but most difficult to treat. Unhealthy weight gain due to poor diet and lack of exercise is responsible for over 300,000 deaths each year. The annual cost to society for obesity is estimated at nearly $100 billion. Overweight children are much more likely to become overweight adults unless they adopt and maintain healthier patterns of eating and exercise.   Over the past three decades, the childhood obesity rate has more than doubled for preschool children aged 2-5 years and adolescents aged 12-19 years, and it has more than tripled for children aged 6-11 years.

Mississippi is ranked #1 in childhood obesity, at a 34% higher rate than any other state. I honestly blame our state funding- especially for children in rural areas. There is simply nothing for them to do. There’s TV and internet, but nothing like skating rinks, or anything of the sort. It’s downright BORING. And, the things that you CAN do…well…they’re simply too expensive. It’s as if they’re weeding out the “poor people” from the “rich people”. Why can’t there be a community center with lots of actual fun activities, that doesn’t cost much, and will be willing to pick children up and drop them back off? Sure, we are one of the poorest states in the union, but there has to be something the community can do to get together and save our children. Every family should exercise together- it would be good for family bonding, much like eating dinner together.

Is this what our society has become? Is this the future of America? Obese, unhealthy children? I don’t want anyone to die from this disease. It’s ridiculous. With the extent of technology we have today, children are becoming more and more lazy. When I was 12, I had to find something outside to do. 12 year olds today have cell phones, ipads, laptops, etc. I’ve seen many a kid sit on a couch, text, and not do anything…and it spreads into adulthood. I’m not saying I’m any different, because everyone who knows me, knows I’m lazy as SHIT.

The thing that gets me is this: most insurance companies won’t insure a medically obese child due to “pre-existing conditions”. And those that DO insure, will slap a higher rate on the insurance, because the child is prone to health problems…they’re making money off of this. Instead of looking at the child and trying to help them, they see a paycheck from the higher insurance rates, and the sad thing is…they won’t get the coverage that they need for a life-saving operation, and have to pay out of their own pockets, even though they are being bled dry to begin with.

What about genetics?

Any explanation of the obesity epidemic has to include both the role of genetics as well as that of the environment. A commonly quoted genetic explanation for the rapid rise in obesity is the mismatch between today’s environment and “energy-thrifty genes” that multiplied in the past under different environmental conditions when food sources were rather unpredictable. In other words, according to the “thrifty genotype” hypothesis, the same genes that helped our ancestors survive occasional famines are now being challenged by environments in which food is plentiful year round.

It has been argued that the thrifty genotype is just part of a wider spectrum of ways in which genes can favor fat accumulation in a given environment. These ways include the drive to overeat (poor regulation of appetite and satiety); the tendency to be sedentary (physically inactive); a diminished ability to use dietary fats as fuel; and an enlarged, easily stimulated capacity to store body fat. Not all people living in industrialized countries with abundant food and reduced physical activity are or will become obese; nor will all obese people have the same body fat distribution or suffer the same health issues. This diversity occurs among groups of the same racial or ethnic background and even within families living in the same environment. The variation in how people respond to the same environmental conditions is an additional indication that genes play a role in the development of obesity. This is consistent with the theory that obesity results from genetic variation interacting with shifting environmental conditions.

In other words, the same genes that helps us adapt in “feast or famine” situations are being applied, even in situations where food is always there. Our bodies generally work like this: the more you eat, the higher your metabolism kicks in. This means you burn a lot more energy- thus, keeping you fit. The idea is that you eat smaller meals throughout the day, instead of one or two heaping meals, because through evolution, humans had to eat like that. And thus with evolution, if you eat less, you actually gain more weight, because your body goes into “famine” mode…and thinks it’s not going to get food for a while, so it stores the fat instead of burning it, and making your metabolism suffer.

However…I think the fact that children are eating all day, and not burning off that energy is really making them sick…

Me, circa 2008.

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 13:03:04 -0500

Me, circa 2008.

Slim Versus The World | OrphenZidane...

Sun, 04 Sep 2011 18:35:04 -0500

Slim Versus The World | OrphenZidane

Now…introducing…the newest song from God/Slim!!! ^____^ You have to hear this.

8 pm on a rainy saturday | OrphenZidane This is my new...

Sat, 03 Sep 2011 20:16:18 -0500

8 pm on a rainy saturday | OrphenZidane

This is my new work.