As Bushie's World Turns (The Update Thread)

[Yelnoc]

Nothing wrong with wanting to see the world. I do too, and I'm not a good enough person to do charity work on my travels. However, you REALLY need to do some homework before even signing up to go to Africa. A good place to begin is wikitravel.org They aren't nearly as professional as wikipedia, but they are geared toward travellers and have some good info. At the very least please, please, please read their article on kenya before comitting to going. Please don't be offended, but you tend to make decisions before weighing all the facts. Know what you're getting into before you sign up. And find out from the mission people where you'll be staying, if there will be a toilet, what will you eat, etc. And make sure your employer is cool with it too. We don't need another job search thread. And one last thing, try not to use the phrase "third-world." It's old fashioned and rubs people the wrong way. By very low African standards, Kenya isn't even that poor a country.

I checked Wikitravel on Africa, and I didn't see very many warnings or caution signs on Kenya, other than the high HIV/AIDS population, which I already knew.

What about Somali kidnappers?

I'm sure they'll keep us far enough away from the Somali border to keep us safe.

And the people who've been kidnapped before *didn't* think they were far enough from the border to be safe?

Obviously, you should be armed at all times just to be safe.

How does one go about buying arms in Kenya, looking as Bushie does and speaking only English?  Because I doubt the plane will accommodate his rifles.

[Yelnoc]

14 weeks from right now, I will probably be on the plane doing some pond hopping headed to some airport in Europe, most likely Amsterdam, Brussels, Zurich, Istanbul, or possibly London-Heathrow.  I will likely leave the Oklahoma City airport around 11:00 or 11:30 Friday morning, March 16.  I'll likely fly into either Washington-Reagan or Dulles, Chicago, Dallas, or Newark for my American layover. The European layover will be in the cities I mentioned above.  I should return to the Oklahoma City airport around 8:30 or so Sunday night, March 25.

So you're going to be in Kenya for a little more than a week?

[Yelnoc]

I hope you aren't starving yourself.  Exercise, exercise, exercise!  I suggest running for the longest distances you can (gradually increasing your mileage) in tandem with push-ups and planks.  Don't do crunches, you will just hurt your back (and the benefits are minimal).

[Yelnoc]

Congrats! I'm proud of you! Have you hit the gym yet? I have been keeping in shape too since my c**t of a girlfriend split up with me. That said, I am having pizza and beer tonight while watching the election returns, so its a bit of a cheat meal for me..

Thanks, Duke!  I haven't hit the gym, yet, mainly because I can't afford a gym membership.  I've been doing a lot of walking during my lunch hour at work.  I can smell 20 pounds and then some.  Right now, my current weight as of this morning was 265.8 which is down from 285.0 when I first started on November 14.

May I suggest calisthenics like push-ups, sit-ups, planks, back flexors, wall sits, leg lifts, etc?  And then down the road, replacing the walking with jogging, and then running?

Oh, and congrats on the progress

[Yelnoc]

bushie, im really not trying to be a smartass.  but *slow down*.   you were saying the *exact same things* with your last fiance.  you kept saying 'im going to take it slow.'  'it wont happen until xxxx at the earliest...'   and look what happened.

I completely understand where you are coming from Ray and that's something I am taking into consideration.  However, when God tells me something that is unmistakeably coming from Him, I cannot ignore it.

To the rest of you on this thread in the past couple pages, it really speaks to my heart that both believers and non-believers (like most of the forum) are being very supportive of this and I really do value all the constructive thoughts I have received.  I have not seen any negative thoughts, just "be absolutely sure" thoughts.  I really appreciate those.  That also confirms to me that my God is behind this because He is causing believers and non-believers alike to coalesce around this idea and get behind me.

Alright I'll bite and be a jerk....

You are very bad at interpreting the Atlas Forum reaction.  Perhaps you should dwell upon your interpretations of what God is telling you.   From a relief perspective, you are also lacking in qualifications to help the people of Kenya. What skills are you bringing to the table? Some misplaced guilt and a savior complex is not enough.

I doubt he will be expected to do skilled labor.  I'm sure somebody other than Delta is making money off of his missionary trip.  Probably part of a larger scheme.

[Yelnoc]

Good luck, Bushie.

[Yelnoc]

Does anybody know if there has been any behaviorist work on what makes for an effective and sustainable weight loss routine.

Yeah. Lay off the fried food and fast food (except maybe Subway), drink coffee in the morning and UNSWEETENED green tea in the afternoon, and have fruit or a salad with every meal. 

Try running a lot.  Like...5 miles a day.  Keeps the pounds off, I'll tell ya.

[Yelnoc]

Instead, I've got something else in mind.  My parents and I were talking about vo-tech classes.  I've found a program at a local vo-tech here in Oklahoma City, a Web Developer program.  It takes 9 months to complete at a total investment of $2,025.

Wow, that's a lot.

HTML and CSS are really easy to pick up on your own, so I hope that is not all you are paying for.  Even if it includes Javascript, php, and some graphic designing stuff (how to make buttons, animations, etc) I still cannot imagine the course being worth that much.  Everything you need to be a freelance web developer can be learned on line.  I won't try to tell you whether or not to take the course, but I do suggest starting the learning process on your own before you even start the course.  If you want specific suggestions (from programs to use to tutorials to follow) PM me.