So I decided to be good and order a meal with fewer carbs today. A vendor is coming in for a short training and is buying us lunch.
I ordered a burger that comes with fries.
Trying to get a jump on the carb thing, I go online to the restaurant's menu and nutrition information to look up the amount of carbs in that meal.
75.
Not a typo.SEVENTY-FIVE.
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
After my initial panic, I reason, "The burger can't have that many carbs...it's all from the bun and the fries."
So now I'm planning to eat only TWO fries and half the bun. The fries will be cold by the time they get here and I don't like them that much anyways.
How in the world do I count for that when I was only given the total amount??
I'm guessing the bun is between 40 and 50 grams of carbs alone. . . but then the burger is some serious protein. . . .
Time to SWAG.
June 28, 2012
June 27, 2012
Marketing
I was watching the news this morning and thinking about how dumb commercials really are. Do people really fall for this stuff?
Do I fall for this stuff and not realize it?
I consider myself rather product-savvy. I have a degree in Business Administration which required me to take a couple marketing classes. I know how it works.
Create a problem for the consumer, present your "solution" and make a huge profit.
I like the mouthwash commercial that says it "cleans virtually your whole mouth, while toothpaste alone cleans only 75 %".*
Really? You can't just swish your toothbrush over your gums, tongue and cheek and clean what's virtually left to clean? Why does your mouth have to be sterilized with alcohol anyways??
Or the new handy plastic food storage baggies that allow you to grab your raw meat with the baggie turned inside out over your hand, wrap the baggie around the meat, and freeze it individually in the larger brand name baggie. Allowing you to buy in bulk, store in smaller portions and "save" money.
(I believe this is also the commercial where a wrecking ball company shows up on the woman's doorstep to apparently help her separate her frozen chicken that she didn't freeze with said name brand baggies. Overdramatic much??)
Ok, hello, I grew up watching my mom do that with sandwich baggies for years. Do I really need to buy your name brand? I could also use plastic wrap. From the dollar store. And save money.
I think products that are green or more environmentally-friendly have an edge over ones that aren't these days. But I've not always found the same performance in those.
I'm more of a price shopper, rather than brand shopper. But that does vary with each product I buy for our home. When J and I got married, we made a deal that if he never ran out of t.p., I would never run out of paper towels. I'm brand-loyal for those two products, even though I dislike anything else that brand makes.
I'll try a store brand at least once. I know we can't buy one certain store's milk, coffee creamer or coffee.
I mighthaveusedtomaybe fallen for the makeup commercials for foundation that makes your skin smoother, more even, and fewer blemishes; the mascara commercials that promise triple length and thickness (hello, those models are SO wearing fake lashes, if they aren't CGI); and maybe some lotion or other beauty products that make a gal smell good and look better.
But I can't tell you how many half empty foundations are in my bathroom. None worked. How many mascaras did I try before I finally settled on an oldie-but-goodie? At least 6 or 7. Multiple times. And don't get me started on lotion. Lotion I don't even want to use anymore because of the chemicals and stuff in it.
(Just can't bring myself to throw it out yet....there's probably expiration dates for that stuff, but I think more importantly, there's the law of diminishing returns {or whatever--I said I had a business degree, I didn't say I like economics}--how long should I wait before I can safely say I will no longer want to use that lotion and toss it?)
So I definitely believe I'm getting smarter about that stuff. Do you guys have any commercial examples you can think of that just made you think, "Really?"
*emphasis mine; and the quote may not be exact either--my fault
Do I fall for this stuff and not realize it?
I consider myself rather product-savvy. I have a degree in Business Administration which required me to take a couple marketing classes. I know how it works.
Create a problem for the consumer, present your "solution" and make a huge profit.
I like the mouthwash commercial that says it "cleans virtually your whole mouth, while toothpaste alone cleans only 75 %".*
Really? You can't just swish your toothbrush over your gums, tongue and cheek and clean what's virtually left to clean? Why does your mouth have to be sterilized with alcohol anyways??
Or the new handy plastic food storage baggies that allow you to grab your raw meat with the baggie turned inside out over your hand, wrap the baggie around the meat, and freeze it individually in the larger brand name baggie. Allowing you to buy in bulk, store in smaller portions and "save" money.
(I believe this is also the commercial where a wrecking ball company shows up on the woman's doorstep to apparently help her separate her frozen chicken that she didn't freeze with said name brand baggies. Overdramatic much??)
Ok, hello, I grew up watching my mom do that with sandwich baggies for years. Do I really need to buy your name brand? I could also use plastic wrap. From the dollar store. And save money.
I think products that are green or more environmentally-friendly have an edge over ones that aren't these days. But I've not always found the same performance in those.
I'm more of a price shopper, rather than brand shopper. But that does vary with each product I buy for our home. When J and I got married, we made a deal that if he never ran out of t.p., I would never run out of paper towels. I'm brand-loyal for those two products, even though I dislike anything else that brand makes.
I'll try a store brand at least once. I know we can't buy one certain store's milk, coffee creamer or coffee.
I mighthaveusedtomaybe fallen for the makeup commercials for foundation that makes your skin smoother, more even, and fewer blemishes; the mascara commercials that promise triple length and thickness (hello, those models are SO wearing fake lashes, if they aren't CGI); and maybe some lotion or other beauty products that make a gal smell good and look better.
But I can't tell you how many half empty foundations are in my bathroom. None worked. How many mascaras did I try before I finally settled on an oldie-but-goodie? At least 6 or 7. Multiple times. And don't get me started on lotion. Lotion I don't even want to use anymore because of the chemicals and stuff in it.
(Just can't bring myself to throw it out yet....there's probably expiration dates for that stuff, but I think more importantly, there's the law of diminishing returns {or whatever--I said I had a business degree, I didn't say I like economics}--how long should I wait before I can safely say I will no longer want to use that lotion and toss it?)
So I definitely believe I'm getting smarter about that stuff. Do you guys have any commercial examples you can think of that just made you think, "Really?"
*emphasis mine; and the quote may not be exact either--my fault
June 22, 2012
Keeping Calm
I have this poster on my wall at work. I got it right after we moved in to our new office in August 2010.
You've probably seen them around. Like, everywhere. They were hard to find when I first wanted one...of course (I'm hipster that way. Just kidding. Not really. But yeah, kinda.). But now you can even make your own online.
So when I read this blog post today from Rachel, I could immediately relate, diabetes-wise.
I can also relate in other areas of life. There is a reason I have this poster on my wall in my office. Sometimes work is just crazy and I forget that I can only do so much with what I'm given. I have to remind myself to do things to the best of my ability and let the chips fall where they may. Usually they "fall" in an acceptable, if not excellent way. Sometimes not. But that's life, and you gotta keep going. I have great bosses. They know I am still learning. They know that things change, the tools we're given change, and they work with us and help us learn the new changes so we can better manage our time.
That's what's been going on the past couple weeks. Sales meeting earlier this month, training last Thursday, more (different) training this past Monday and Tuesday, other people's training Wednesday and Thursday (that I didn't need to attend, but still affected me because I had to run around like a crazy person cleaning up Dunkin' Donuts' crumbs and spilled coffee from breakfast and getting the breakroom ready for the lunch delivery...then cleaning up after that and getting the extra food put away so that the pest control guy could come in and spray his magic bug-eradicating formula....because, seriously, what MALE in our office would have done that??) and now, hopefully, today will be calmer.
Only a week and a half until me and some gals take a road trip to PA. I'm excited to see my fam there, not so excited that one of my good friends who lives in that area won't be around, and excited to hit up the downtown area and find some cool stuff.
Also exciting is that the hubby has off on the 4th of July. For like, the first time ever that I can remember.
Randomly having a day off together in the middle of the week? Yes please.
You've probably seen them around. Like, everywhere. They were hard to find when I first wanted one...of course (I'm hipster that way. Just kidding. Not really. But yeah, kinda.). But now you can even make your own online.
So when I read this blog post today from Rachel, I could immediately relate, diabetes-wise.
I can also relate in other areas of life. There is a reason I have this poster on my wall in my office. Sometimes work is just crazy and I forget that I can only do so much with what I'm given. I have to remind myself to do things to the best of my ability and let the chips fall where they may. Usually they "fall" in an acceptable, if not excellent way. Sometimes not. But that's life, and you gotta keep going. I have great bosses. They know I am still learning. They know that things change, the tools we're given change, and they work with us and help us learn the new changes so we can better manage our time.
That's what's been going on the past couple weeks. Sales meeting earlier this month, training last Thursday, more (different) training this past Monday and Tuesday, other people's training Wednesday and Thursday (that I didn't need to attend, but still affected me because I had to run around like a crazy person cleaning up Dunkin' Donuts' crumbs and spilled coffee from breakfast and getting the breakroom ready for the lunch delivery...then cleaning up after that and getting the extra food put away so that the pest control guy could come in and spray his magic bug-eradicating formula....because, seriously, what MALE in our office would have done that??) and now, hopefully, today will be calmer.
Only a week and a half until me and some gals take a road trip to PA. I'm excited to see my fam there, not so excited that one of my good friends who lives in that area won't be around, and excited to hit up the downtown area and find some cool stuff.
Also exciting is that the hubby has off on the 4th of July. For like, the first time ever that I can remember.
Randomly having a day off together in the middle of the week? Yes please.
June 19, 2012
Those Dummies
You ever feel like you put a lot of time, energy, and reasoning into the things you do, only to have some dummy somewhere not pay any attention to it and make you repeat yourself?
Again and again?
You ever just ignore that dummy?
Again and again?
You ever just ignore that dummy?
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