Confusing InterWeb Interconnections

Since the advent of the World Wide Web in the early 90's (the Web, not to be confused with the Internet; one is a subset of the other), I have had a web site or a blog of some type. Most of my instances on the Web have died and gone away but some are still out there. This becomes a problem when a company which used to host my site gets absorbed by a larger company and my older stuff now lives all mixed with my newest stuff and new links take people to old sites.

Such is the case right now whereas some of my old profiles got brought back to life and my new links somehow take people to websites I no longer maintain. Case in point is Google. It seems Google now owns every company I ever hosted a site with. So, if I post a comment somewhere and you try to follow my profile you may find yourself at any of a number of old blogs that will confuse the heck out of you. Lately, I notice that people end up at my old gardening blog, which I no longer maintain.

I apologize for that. I am trying to create links on my old blogs and sites to direct people to my new blogs and sites but I don't know how effective that move has been. Sigh!

Time to boogie

Today is the day I start exercising. I like walking better than anything else because it gives me time to think and I like being outside. I may also get out a bit this afternoon to metal detect. Stage two of my dominion over diabetes has began.

Wish me luck.

Reached blood sugar goal today

Well after a week of insulin and metformin AND cutting back on the number of calories consumed, I've reached the fasting blood sugar goal set by the diabetes nurse. She set the goal at 80-110 and I woke up with a 107. Now, I am at the upper range of the goal but within the goal nonetheless. This means I can do better and will. Heck, I haven't even began to exercise yet.

The next step is to stay within the after-meal (postprandial) goal of no higher than 140. I haven't reached that yet but I think today I may. The big question however, is: what is the long-range plan? Can I keep this up? We will see.

Diabetes diatrabe

So I've been a little bitter about my diabetes for many years now. I don't like it one bit. Moreover, I have been more than a tad unhappy about the way it's treated. Surely since insulin was discovered in the 20's, better treatments have been developed. Sadly, this is not so. metformin, with it's stomach wreaking side effects, and insulin are still the only game in town. What gives!? Where are the 21st century treatments!?

Alas! at the end, this darn disease was caused by my life-style and so there is no one else to blame but me. And to be fair, I finally understood why doctors treat this disease the way they do; that is, they work under the assumption that the patient will not alter their eating habits nor they will exercise and so they pile up the metformin and the insulin.

Perhaps after taking my metformin and feeling like an alien is about to burst through my belly will motivate me to finally loose the rest of my extra weight (400lbs around the year 2000, 250lbs today) and finally kick diabetes by the wayside.

Peace.

Taming the diabetes

I'm back to receiving medical care after a hiatus of six or so years. It's time. I've fooled around enough trying to take control of my blood sugar. To that end, my new doctor employs a diabetes specialist. This lady is no non-sense and immediately laid down the law. I am now on a very low dosage of insulin and she upped the metformin dosage. Her approach got results almost immediately and my blood sugar levels drastically fell in just one day. The rapid fall has left me weak and feeling nauseated but it's all for a good cause. I also like that she set pretty high standards for me as far as my blood sugar and blood pressure goes. Let's roll!

Christmas is almost here. I can't say I am as excited about it as I was in years past. Could be my lower blood sugar levels, ha ha!

Life goes on.

The Rebirth of Cachoras Bichis

Back in November of 2008, I had the audacity to think that people cared about what I had to say. You can't blame me though, it was a time of renewal for everyone. We had a new president and the future seemed bright. I was completely fired up by Barack. I was moved by the fact that we elected our first non-white president during my life time. So I began a blog. I called it Cachoras Bichis (naked lizards) in the vernacular of my home town in Mexico.
I long since abandoned the blog and completely forgot about it. This morning however, I was doing a Google search and the top result for my query was my old blog! Seeing my old blog reminded me that I had been thinking of starting another personal blog. I already maintain two other blogs: One for my metal detecting hobby and the other for my language learning hobby. Those two blogs are very specific; I don't post my personal views on things there that are not related to the topics discussed. So I needed a blog where I could record what's going on with my life in general. Already, by reading the old posts, I can see the value on being able to recall things, sort of like in an online diary. Anyway, I don't expect this blog to be any more popular than the other personal blogs I have done in the past. Heck, I even think that I will be writing this one blog in the languages I am learning so I am almost guaranteeing that no one will read it.
So to start, I am going to do a bit of then-and-now comparing.

ME
Back then I was 280 lbs and struggling with diabetes and high blood pressure. Today I am 240 lbs and still struggling with diabetes and high blood pressure. The difference is that in that time, I have become much better at responding to high blood sugar/blood pressure events. As I am typing this, I have been on a reduced sodium diet for over a month now. I went from 10,000mg of sodium a day to less than 2000mg of sodium a day. I am also doing better with the carbs and sugars --most days. I keep wanting to drop 40 more pounds but I haven't gotten to it yet.

WORK
I am still at the same job. I suppose that is good although there are days when I really wish I was retired.

LIFE
Back then I was very angry at my wife. In that time, we separated and we got back. Things are definitely not the same. Sadly, I am not as angry anymore for many reasons, none of them good but at least I get to be with my sons everyday. I don't garden anymore although I hope I can get back to it someday. Back then I had bought a ukulele and I still play it. Also, in that time I bought a metal detector and I really enjoy that hobby.
Back then, I was struggling to learn how to read Russian and I failed. Today, I have the goal of becoming a polyglot and I am teaching myself Japanese and Brazilian Portuguese. I think I will be fluent on both by the end of this year. I am actually learning to read, write, and speak Japanese. Many people only learn to speak Japanese and never really learn to read it or write it. Next year I am planning on attending the second polyglot conference in Montreal, Canada. To that end, I will be teaching myself French for sure. Other languages I will tackle next year are Korean, Egyptian Arabic,Turkish, and Russian. I will be dabbling in many other languages however since I find it to be a fun hobby.
Back then, my friend Tim was talking about moving to Brazil with his new wife. He finally moved there this year and is having the time of his life. I've made new friends since then and I've abandoned old friends.
My sons are no longer babies and they are becoming persons in their own right.
President Obama is on his second term and managed to pass the Affordable Care Act, which is a step towards universal health insurance.
Back then I remembered my first love and today I have reconnected with her on Facebook. She is married and happy back in my hometown.

So there it is. I have many things to say about many things. If you happen upon this blog, don't be shy and say hi.