Debbie Lim's Online Journal

2011-12-21T22:46:00.002-05:00

Hello Everyone,

Thank you for reading my story. I wanted to add that I did not write it to have a sad story or to speak negatively about SVSF. Something deep inside of me needed to write it and I wanted to go with my intuition.

I am learning that some of the workers did not know why some of us were placed there. I only wrote of my experience of how we were placed there and not of my time spent there. My entire time there was not that bad. I remember only one worker (Yes, I will say her name, Rosemary) that was very mean and should not have been there taking care of any children, (I hate to admit this too, but the nuns were not nice either).

I feel all of the choices that I made, from the minute I was forced into the system, made me who I am today. Let me explain... I am very open about my childhood and who I am. I strongly feel, if I had to go through what I went through in my childhood... to get to the point where I am today, I would relive my entire life the exact, same way.

Instead of turning to alcohol or recreational drugs (I do have my own story with a Medical Doctor and prescription drugs), Donna and I focused on how we could help other people. We were determined not to be another statistic. Fitness was our answer and 32 years later we are still in this profession :-) Of course we had many chapters in our lives and the plot continues to change every day, but we stayed focused and continue to help other people and in return it gave us validation to "live".

We still struggle with certain feelings, severe anxiety, and depression, but we stay motivated, positive, and focused. Perhaps some people think that we "work 24/7 so that we don't have to think" and maybe that is the case, but why go on a track of negativity and self-destruction when there is absolutely nothing you can do to change the past? Just move forward and hope for the best :-)

[Saying this in general] We all have our stories and we all took different roads to get to this point in life. It is nice to look back at the good times and learn from the bad times. We should never use excuses to validate something that we know is hurting us, either mentally, emotionally, or physically. Every morning we all should wake up with a smile and continue to have a "grin" throughout the day! Keeping that grin plastered on your face the entire day WILL change your life.

Listen to a Child

2011-12-18T13:33:00.017-05:00

I am not sure why I am writing this right now, but something inside of me insisted that I needed to write this. So, if you are reading this and need to help a child or you are the one that is seeking help, please get the help now. If you feel you are afraid or no one will listen, go to a church, hospital, or to someone that you can trust.

Photo of Donna(top) and me, 35 years later. Photos taken at Sarsh Fisher. Their doors are closed and a private business bought the property.

Our parents told us to "pack our things". Of course we were confused and afraid, because we had no idea of why we were packing our things. (Imagine coming home from school and your parents are telling you to pack your things. You do as you are told and no one is talking or telling you why. Imagine that feeling....)

We drove down this long driveway and arrived at the doorsteps of this huge building that we never saw. Our mother got out of the truck and demanded that we follow her with our bags. We were still confused and afraid. We got out of the truck and followed our mother.

Next, we saw a nun walking into the "waiting room". Without a word, our mother turned away from us and left. Donna and I stood there in panic and wondered why we were there! The nun said NOTHING to us, but only to follow her. (Imagine your mother walking away from you. No hugs or no words.)

I remember walking down this long hallway. It was empty and all we heard were our footsteps and the plastic bags moving in our arms. Donna and I kept looking at each other with fear in our eyes. We had NO idea to WHY we were there and what was going to happen to us.

We arrived at the end of the hallway, where there were two shorter hallways. Two Ladies join the nun and each of them instructed us to follow them, but in opposite hallways. At that point we started crying and begging to know what was going on. I was being separated from my twin sister and had no idea of what I did to deserve this. We started screaming and crying for each other. Those ladies pulled at our arms and dragged us into another part of this large building. (I remember how cold these ladies were. They were mean and treated us like we were nothing.)

We were separated for almost one year... attending different schools and living apart. That was the most horrible, frightening, experience in my life. I felt so alone, afraid, and unloved. I had nobody. That was the start of living in the system for us. Words cannot describe the loss and fear that I had when they took me away from Donna. No one explained anything to me or told me what was going on. I felt like I did something horrible and deserved this treatment.

Unlike others, we did not have a great experience at St. Vincent Sarah Fisher. I could not function and was confused most of the time. It was always in my head that NO ONE told us WHY we were there!

Twenty-five years later or more, my daughter and I went back to Sarah Fisher and spoke with a nun. I pleaded with her to give me some type of answer... She told me she would look into it... When I first met her, she was kind and sweet, however, when I went back to see her, she look at me like I was some type of dirt from the streets.

She handed me an envelope and walked away! In the envelope, it stated that we were there because of US! It never mentioned the abuse or torture. Our parents blamed EVERYTHING on US! Back in the 1970s, NO ONE listened to children. EVERYTHING in the report were LIES. We were left there to rot. No one was allowed to visit us. Our parents wanted us to hurt, so they separated us and told these people from this home that our grandmother was not allowed to visit us. NO ONE came to visit us.

Reason for my story: Listen to a child. Open your eyes when a child is screaming for help with their eyes, because they are afraid to open their mouths.

I don't know how many times I came to school beaten and could hardly move and NOT ONE of the teachers came to help me or ask if I was okay, (One teacher did when I was older). I posted little notes around the neighborhood for help and those notes were given to my step-father and I got a beaten for it. The owner of a local party store (Bob's Party Store, that used to be on Fenkell in Brightmoor) knew ALL about our abuse and did NOTHING to report it.

2011-12-04T22:11:00.045-05:00

The Experience of our First Fitness DVD - "Z-Box Fitness - the Workout"

I wanted to write about the production of our first fitness DVD. It was a rollercoaster ride, but at the end, it was wonderful learning experience.
As most of you know, Donna and I have been working on our own program for many years. We tried many ways to combine different fitness techniques into one class. From "Fitness Fusion" to "Ultimate Fitness" we felt we were getting real close.
With the help of our Fitness Motivators Team Instructors, Z-Box Fitness was born. The "Z" is short of "Z.E.N.". Z.E.N. stands for Zone Envision Earth. Z-Box blends cardio boxing, dance, and body toning. Since we were introduced to Tai Chi at a very young age, we decided to develop our own "Chi" moves and added relaxation to the end.... Making Z-Box the perfect balance for a dynamic fitness program!
In 2009 we decided to make it a trademark name. It wasn't easy filing for the trademark without an attorney, but we did it! It was such a stressful time dealing with the government on our own, one minute I was crying and the next minute I was in joy! Finally, one year later, we were approved for the trademark! When that piece of paper came in the mail, I had a silent moment with my little dogs, laughter and crying in joy, because WE DID IT! Of course when I was finished with my moment, I called my family and told them!

Moving on to the next step, Donna and I had a decision to make... open a studio or create a fitness DVD. We plan to do both, but started our plan with the fitness DVD first. We have been searching for a studio space, but we cannot find the perfect location that will meet the needs of all of our students. We have very supportive students, all the way in Milford to Birmingham, we wanted a central location. We are concentrating on Livonia, close to the freeways, in between the cities that we teach in, and hopefully close enough for most of our students.

Getting back to Z-Box, Donna and I started our search for the perfect production team. I did my research with production teams that worked with fitness videos and most of them came out of CA and IL. We almost signed up with the Chicago team, but then a name was referred to us from one of Donna's clients. We met with "him". and although his price came in extremely high, we thought this would be a perfect match because he was a referral (the brother-in-law of the referral!) and he told us that, "his price was the best out there and he is doing it for that price because he was a referral from his brother-in-law".

Needless to say, the day of the shoot was a complete disaster! Although we tried to make the best of it, it was very hard to concentrate. From the entire team slipping on the floor to the lighting used in the production, it was doomed from the minute it began. The entire footage taped was not usable and tossed in the garbage. We wanted to use this experience as a stepping stone for something better.

Within two weeks, a family friend, David (David is a member of the radio 955 DJ Bomb Squad - DJ David B) and my daughter found us the perfect production team, Paul Martindale and his crew. We actually were able to tape where we wanted to... Downtown Detroit! The backdrop was PERFECT and the entire experience was PERFECT! Our DVD was taped in HD and everything was shot like it was a movie set! With me being a techie geek, I also fell in love with all of their equipment! :-)

I will always look back to our second production day as one of the best days of my life and I thank God for the experience! I appreciated everyone that was part of the production and truly am proud of every second. It was a very expensive learning tool for us, that we had to experience something REALLY bad, to get to something really good! I will always appreciate Paul (and his crew) and our team of Instructors that worked real hard on this project for making our dream a reality. I also love and appreciate our students. Without our students, this DVD would never have been made.

We received our DVDs the day before Thanksgiving! The orders have been pouring in and the reviews and feedback (so far) have been excellent! We are keeping our fingers crossed for other things that we have been working on for this DVD and pray that things will continue to be positive.
Z-Box Fitness - the Workout DVD - $15.00 each (plus MI tax)

Debbie's Side Note: Life is one big experience. At times we may only see the bad and the ugly. There are so many people out there that wants to take full advantage of us. The mean and evil people are the ones that we notice when it is too late. When our path seems to be dark, there is always a light at the end... it depends on which direction you choose to take.

We may stumble along the way and trip over bad decisions, but learn from them and keep lifting each foot to each beat of your heart. Sometimes lifting your foot will become heavy, and those are the times that you should lean on the ones that you trust and love. Let them hold you up for a brief second... until you are able to stand tall, like a tree and make waves, like turning the pages to the next Chapter of your life. Be that tree and don't let someone make you fall. Be strong and keep pushing for something that you believe in.

My entire life was and still is like that. I try to keep my feet grounded and will always work hard for something that I believe in. I am able to cry and let go. When someone tries to pull me down, I bob and weave... Let them try to jab at me, because they will always miss their target. I use my creativity, my strength in faith, my positive attitude, and the love of my family to keep me going. I have used the negativity that crossed my path into something positive. I believe in karma.

I wanted to end this with a picture of Donna. I took this picture of Donna in a field of Sunflowers. Donna loved Sunflowers ALL of her life and when we had this opportunity to go to a field of Sunflowers, I wanted to take it no matter what! We had mosquitoes and bees trying to attack us LOL We walked in mud and tripped over branches and big holes in the ground and it felt like forever to get to the field. Once we got there, I saw Donna's face and she looked like a little girl that just saw Santa Claus. She looked so happy and was living one of her dreams on her Bucket List. I was able to capture the moment and it made me feel so good inside! I look at this picture often and will cherish it for life.

Tiny overdoses of Tylenol can add up to deadly damage

2011-11-23T16:46:00.000-05:00

Tiny overdoses of Tylenol can add up to deadly damage

Food Safety...

2011-11-23T15:49:00.001-05:00

This link is very important - I liked it so much that I wanted to post it at my blog to remember it: Food Safety: Food Storage, Preparation & Handling

Z-BOX FITNESS® - EXPERIENCE THE DIFFERENCE

2011-10-18T10:32:00.000-04:00

Finally! I feel so happy and blessed! It is finally happening.

2011-09-22T10:29:00.003-04:00

I just have to put this out there... Do you know someone that OPTS to "pay whatever they choose (Keywords: OPTS & CHOOSE) to pay for their rent for that month "because they can"???? I wish I could tell my mortgage company, "I just want to pay $200.00 this month and maybe next month I can pay $300.00, but I will pay you when I get around to it...I may want to buy more cigarettes and find a new excuse next month...." This person has always cheated the system or had an excuse for everything that required a little work! This is a person that used racial attacks against me and years later, her own children married outside of their race! I totally believe in karma...
It has nothing to do with the economy... this person knows that the house has been paid for in full. That is why she moved into this house, knowing that she would not pay the rent and only pay it when she "feels like it". Why does it matter to me? Because someone very close to me has to deal with her every dang month and hates it.

Okay.... breathe.....

This article will make you think twice....

2011-09-22T09:36:00.001-04:00

This article will make you think twice about what you put into your mouth!
Click here...

Disappointment

2011-08-24T19:38:00.004-04:00

Definition: The feeling of dissatisfaction that follows the failure of expectations to manifest. Similar to regret, it differs in that the individual feeling regret focuses primarily on the personal choices that contributed to a poor outcome, while the individual feeling disappointment focuses on the outcome itself. It is a source of psychological stress.

We all have had the feeling of disappointment more than a few times during our lives. Some of us may feel disappointed about something right now.. Perhaps you were disappointed with the outcome with a decision you made... Disappointed with a lecture at work that you gave... It could be any event in your life or something at work did not go as well as you expected. The list can go on and on.

My theory of the word... Disappointment... Make disappointment "Disappear". Disappointment can work in your favor. Think of it this way... if you are disappointed with something, it means that it was not meant to be, or you have to revisit your plan and try something different or new. Make that feeling disappear by changing it now. In addition, think positive of the disappointment. Perhaps you had a dream to write a book. You wrote to a publishing company and they denied your book. You were disappointed, so.... A) you decided to quit, or B) you decided to move forward to another publisher. I am hoping that you chose the latter.

Work on a new angle. Make something good happen to that feeling of disappointment. Make a point to make it disappear by changing it to work for you. Whatever it takes, change that disappointment to something positive.

It depends on how you choose to deal with a disappointment, no matter how big or small the disappointment is to you. A disappointment is something you care about, isn't it? If you did not care about it or had a passion for it, it would not be a disappointment. You will either move forward and make something good happen or you will quit and keep that disappointment feuding in your mind and soul.

Think of disappointment as an opportunity for growth. Learn from it and move forward. You may have more disappointments along the way and that is okay! Just move forward and use it as a learning tool. Treat it as another Chapter in your Life. By using the knowledge from your previous experience from that disappointment, you can act more focused towards your goal. You will learn from that disappointment and look back at it and think... I did it!

Decision...... Disappointment.... Make a Point for it to Disappear...... Decision...... It is up to you.

Not what it is Worth at ALL... BodyMedia Armband

2011-07-24T10:44:00.019-04:00

The BodyMedia Armband, AKA The BodyBugg. Well, I can honestly say that I am now able to write my review after using this product for only three days! Instead of writing the details of my review, I decided to make it short and quick with a Pro and Con list. Remember, this is my own personal review on this product. You can take it or leave it :-)

Pro:
• It is a great product for those that need the extra push to stay on a set schedule and for those who need the extra push to count calories and to keep moving.
• It is a great product for those that need to see their progress, by uploading the readings to the online chart (that you have to pay for).

Con:
• It is not attractive on the arm when you have to wear it 24/7 (minus the shower of course).
• It is not accurate to measure your sleep pattern! As soon as you are in the supine position or any type of position that have you "laying down", it will start counting your "sleep pattern" and not your actual "sleep". This part of the armband was important for me, because I wanted to know exactly how much sleep I was getting. It does not give you the actual sleep, but only gives you the actual time frame that you are "laying down".
• This is a glorified Pedometer.
• It does not count your heart rate... DUH, of course not, where would it count it on your lateral, mid to upper arm?
• It cost a lot of money to use the company's Activity's Manager. You NEED to register online and pay for it in order to use the armband.

Summary:
• If you cannot control your portion size of your food and need that extra help, keep a journal of your food intake and keep it with you at all times. You do not need a fancy, unattractive, expensive device to chart it on a paid subscription, online to do it for you! It is simple math, plus or minus..... All you need to know is the calories consumed, minus your physical activity that you did for that day and the end number will show you how many calories are burned.
• Invest in a good heart rate monitor! It is important to know your Resting heart Rate (RHR) and your Target Heart Rate (THR). For more information, I wrote a few articles about this at my website a few years ago. Here are the links: Heart Rate
• Buy an inexpensive Pedometer and clip it to your pants or skirt (it is hidden too!) Use the chart below to determine the Steps that you need to do per day to reach your goals.

Lightly Active - "I can talk and sing."
Example of Activity:
30 minutes of moderate activity like walking at a slow pace.
5000 steps

Moderately Active - "I can talk, but cannot sing."
Example of Activity:
Walking (at 3+ mph), light jogging, power walking (under 4+ MPH), dancing, water aerobics.
8000 steps

Very Active - "I can talk, but need to catch my breath at times."
Example of Activity:
Powering walking, aerobic classes, jogging, Bootcamp, Z-Box, Zumba.
10000 steps

Extremely Active - "I can only say a few words without stopping to catch my breath."
Example of Activity:
Power walking, running, indoor cycling, hiking uphill with a backpack, jogging.
15000 steps

Remember, you will need between 45 to 60 minutes of moderate-intensity cardiovascular exercise five days per week. Take a few classes (hint hint, Fitness Motivators has a lot of classes to chose from! hehe), have a walking buddy (or the best companion, a dog!), or stop taking the best parking spot and elevators, and walk more wherever you go if you are able to.

For weight loss and according to the American College of Sports Medicine, adults need more than the recommended 30 minutes of activity that is suggested for reduced risk of disease. Between 150 and 250 minutes per week produces modest weight loss. However, greater weight loss results for those performing more than 250 minutes of physical activity per week.

Bottom-line:
• Eat smaller portions.
• Stay active.
• Get up from your computer at least once per half hour.
• Sit at your computer or TV no longer than one hour at a time! However, getting up, no matter what you are doing, every 30 minutes is idea for all of us! If you cannot, PLEASE get up from your chair, every hour! Even if it means to let the dog out, go to the kitchen and drink some water, walk in place, go to the bathroom, SOMETHING to get your butt off of the chair and MOVE! If you are at work, walk to the printer... stand at your desk and stretch and move your legs... SOMETHING! :-)

Time to go to Costco and return it.

Armband...

2011-07-23T10:30:00.002-04:00

On Fri, Jul 22, 2011 at 9:17 PM, Debbie Lim <lim761@gmail.com> wrote:

Tonight is the first night I am wearing this BodyMedia Armband. It is just like what they wear on the Biggest Loser Show. Of course I have MI activity in it yet, because it is in the late evening.
It took me a while to input the everyday foods/ coffee that I normally intake.
My goal is to lose 7 to 8 lbs. before our DVD taping. I will do my best to do everything I am suppose to do to be successful with this...... We shall see.....

Sent by Debbie's Android

Getting Comfortable as I Age...

2011-07-22T19:02:00.005-04:00

July 20, 2011: Right now we have a “Brown Out” in our city. Currently, Michigan’s weather has been in to the high 90’s to 100 degrees. Tomorrow we are expected to reach over 100. There is no room to complain. I think it is a lot better than the winter months that will come within a few months too soon! Just go with the flow I say. Why complain about something that we have no control over.

So, I sit here typing on my laptop since I cannot turn on my computer to work. All of my appliances and electronics are powered off for their safety.

Last month my family surprised my twin sister and me with an all expensive trip to the Zumba Convention. Six days and five nights in Orlando, Florida! What an awesome gift and an awesome time! Donna and I had to plan our wardrobe, costumes, class subs, etc. within two weeks of leaving to Florida! Chrissy, Adam (my niece and her husband), my daughter Tatiana, Donna, and I headed to Florida on our actual birthday. We had no idea of what was ahead of us, but the excitement made all of us smile!

As most of you know, I had a big birthday this year. It was hard for me to come to terms with the BIG birthday and seeing the fast changes in my body and face, made my mind play negative thoughts and endless doubt of who I am and how much time I have on this earth. Okay, maybe a little dramatic, but come on…. A girl can whine about the new age for at least one day or so!

Getting back to our Florida trip, we had a lot of fun! When we were not at the workshops/classes, we were shopping, eating, or going to the Epcot Center. The rain or the heat did not stop us. I had a wonderful time hanging out with the five of us and thankful for the time we had together, without work or any worries. With the exception of Nino (my husband) having a major eye cornea tear while we were gone, it was the perfect birthday.

The last day of the convention, we attended the lecture of Keynote Speaker, Dr. Pamela Peeke. She was phenomenal! Her lecture hit home for me. Adapt and Adjust was her keywords. I cannot have my 20, or even 30 year old body back, but I can accept the changes in my new birthday body (okay, I am still having a hard time writing my new age…..). Instead of “wishing I had my abs of when I was 20”, I should accept how my abs look today. The sad truth is, when I was in my 20’s and even my 40’s, I thought I was FAT! What a shame to waste all that time and energy! I look back now and see that it was far from the truth!

I was reading a great article in Self Magazine today and wanted to take some quotes out of it to look back on it for future reading. What a perfect subject in Self Magazine to add to this journal posting…. Self-Expression (August 2011 issue, page 32) . Quotes from the article that we all can relate to:

• Regarding plastic surgery: “…….Their faces are fresh and smooth in contrast to my own, and it is hard not to feel ugly by comparison. It doesn’t help that these women occasionally see fit to lecture mw – You don’t have to look this way” – as if aging were a disease from which they’ve recently recovered, one for which I’ve stubbornly refused treatment……………………… But the truth is that no cosmetic procedure will ever give me back the younger me, just a different me, and that different me might be a stranger. My energy would better spent coming to terms with the face that represents who I am today --- part grown-up, part teenager, part mother, part wife and lover. My character is stamped on my face. I am not about to let a doctor mess with that………”

• (Talking about a friend who died in his 30’s of AIDS) “…. His life ended long before his time could line his pale cheeks. But that morning, as I watched his chest stop moving, I could think only of what Ed would have traded for the chance to grow old. So silently vowed to honor the life he never got to finish by celebrating my ability to finish my own. I promised myself I would never complain about my sheer luck at having the gift of another day. Another decade. That’s a promise I hope I get another 40 years to keep…”

• My favorite from this article: “… As I watched my colleagues stress out over minor mistakes or try hard to prove themselves, I recognize a younger self that I’d happily outgrown. I had a track record, a perspective that allowed me to embrace the things that caused me so much anxiety when I was younger – uncertainty, new situations. I was finally comfortable enough to do what I wanted……… The great thing about getting older is that instead of having fewer choices, I have many more….”

P90X, Insanity, Rushfit-Are these workouts for everybody?

2011-06-10T23:48:00.000-04:00

P90X, Insanity, Rushfit-Are these workouts for everybody?

Lawsuit over potato chip ingredient settled

2011-05-05T10:48:00.002-04:00

Soooo NOT cool!!!!!!! I wonder how many other companies are doing things that the public is unaware of! Maybe that is why cancer cannot be cured or we are being diagnosed every second, because we are unaware of what we feed our bodies!
Lawsuit over potato chip ingredient settled

Article below, if the link does not work:

Lawsuit over potato chip ingredient settled

State protested chemical in food
August 02, 2008By Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer

Frito-Lay and two other potato chip companies have agreed to reduce the levels of a cancer-causing chemical in their products in a settlement of a state lawsuit, Attorney General Jerry Brown said Friday.

The court-approved settlement comes three years after Brown's predecessor, Bill Lockyer, sued fast-food chains and potato chip companies, saying they had failed to warn California consumers about the dangers of acrylamide.

Besides Frito-Lay, which sells most of the potato chips in California, the other companies agreeing to reduce acrylamide levels are Kettle Foods, maker of Kettle Chips, and Lance Inc., maker of Cape Cod Chips, Brown's office said. In another settlement last week, Heinz agreed to cut in half the acrylamide levels in Ore-Ida frozen french fries and tater tots and pay $600,000 in penalties and costs, the state said.

health and safety in California" and called for similar actions by other makers of chips and french fries.

Procter & Gamble agreed in January to reduce acrylamide by 50 percent in Pringles potato chips. McDonald's, KFC, Wendy's and Burger King agreed last year to post warnings about acrylamide in chips and fries.

Acrylamide is produced when potatoes and other starchy foods are cooked at high temperatures. It is used industrially for treating sewage, and its presence in food was unknown in 1990 when California listed the chemical as a cancer-causing substance under Proposition 65. That initiative, passed in 1986, requires companies to post warnings of exposure to substances that cause cancer or birth defects.

Swedish scientists were the first to detect acrylamide in food in a 2002 study. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is studying the chemical but has not imposed nationwide restrictions. The FDA has advised consumers that they can reduce the levels of acrylamide in fried potatoes by not over-browning them while cooking.

The settlement requires the potato chip producers to reduce acrylamide to 275 parts per billion in three years, a low enough level to avoid a Prop. 65 warning label. That amounts to a 20 percent reduction for Frito-Lay and an 87 percent reduction for Kettle Chips, Brown's office said. Little or no reduction will be needed for most Cape Cod chips, but one product, Cape Cod Robust Russets, will require a warning label, the attorney general said.

The companies also agreed to pay nearly $2 million in penalties and costs.

Avoid Overuse/Repetition As We Age

2011-04-12T22:22:00.013-04:00

The subject that I am writing about below will reflect on me personally and hopefully help some of you out there with similar problems.

As I write this, (March 18, 2011, my 22 year wedding anniversary that I cannot celebrate.) I am literally laying on the right side of my body, moving from one position to the next, feeling very uncomfortable with a herniated disc. After being bedridden for four days, every few minutes I have to change positions because of the pain. I cannot sit, nor can I stand on both feet without pain, so the only option is to lie down or walk around the house holding on to a chair with wheels or use a walking stick for support.

Now one may ask, Did you do this while exercising. The answer is no, I don’t think so. For a few months I have been feeling a “numbing, tingling sensation” in my low back, but not any pain. It would come and go and I did bring it up with Nino, but as soon as I brought it up, the sensation would subside. Right now, I believe that sensation that I have been feeling for a few months now were my warning signs.

After a pre-production meeting Donna and I had, I came home to do some clinic work before class. I walked over to my office chair and sat down like I normally would. As soon as I sat down, I had the most severe pain, rippling across my low back. It felt like a sharp knife was slowly cutting me in half. Thank God my husband, Nino was home (half day at the clinic). I started yelling for his help. I could not move and I was paralyzed with intense pain. I was crying so hard that it felt worse than labor pain! Nino is a Chiropractic Physician and he was able to help me right away (THANK GOD I am married to a Chiropractor!). To cut a long story short, this happened to me almost four days ago and it still feels like it happened a few minutes ago. Nino said the only positive thing by me being immobile; it will also help my knee heal (Lateral Meniscus Tear. Yes, another injury from bending down while I was picking up the dog bowl!)

It is very easy to get injured if we don't acknowledge the physical changes that come along with getting older. Personally, I admit, it is very hard to acknowledge any type of changes that is happening to my body. In my mind, I am able to do more physically than what I did in my 20s and 30s and literally can do more physically than most in their 20s and 30s. Although both of my injuries did not happen while I was teaching my classes, it could have resulted from overuse. I have been teaching so many classes throughout 31 years of my life and maybe my body is telling me to slow down. As I research information for this article, it will help me and hopefully help others reading this too.

Whether you exercise regularly or not, and as we grow older, our muscle fibers shrink in number and in size and become less sensitive to nerve impulses. Most of us experience some decrease in our cardio endurance, strength, balance, flexibility, and coordination around age 40 or so. There are other factors, than our age alone... Some of these factors include genetics, medication, health, diet, lifestyle and our physical activity levels. Sometimes our bodies even remind us of the injuries from younger years.

For those of us that exercise regularly, we keep pushing ourselves to stay in shape and if you’ve noticed, staying physically fit gets tougher every year! Work out as much as you want to for the rest of your life, Sonia, my good friend and a member of our FM Team said that to me years ago and I repeat that to myself often when I know I am overdoing it.

The weight seems to creep up on us even when our fitness level remains the same in intensity and duration throughout the years. Haven’t you notice as we age, we feel we have to train harder and longer just to maintain our weight or add more to our already full fitness schedule? Well, most likely, that often backfires on us and if we are not careful, the result is more visits to doctor’s offices and emergency rooms for injuries. So what do we do?

Because of our aging bodies and depending on what type of workout we do, we will probably have to modify our fitness routines. (e.g., If you are a runner or if you play tennis regularly, you probably are seeing a decline in your performance when comparing your performance to when you were in your 20s or 30s.)

Make sure to avoid overuse and repetition. Not only doing the same exercise day after day will become boring and after awhile, you will also reach a plateau faster and eventually end up with an overuse injury too.

When we repeatedly put stress on the same muscle groups and perform the same movement patterns, it will put strain on muscles, tendons and ligaments. By doing this, it will cause irritation, inflammation and even stress fractures. Even if you do your best to avoid an overuse injury, you may still end up with muscle imbalance, weakness/tightness, and alignment problems.

To avoid these problems, do a variety of different types of exercise. If you are currently in a class and love it or have a fitness routine that you want to continue with, or because you are a creature of habit, just add another activity to your weekly regimen. Just make sure it is different from what you are doing now. Circuit or Interval-type workouts like Z-Box Fitness® will enhance your program and keep it balanced. Remember: Repetition will eventually produce overuse, so make sure to change things up every few months.

Some of us mistakenly think more exercise is better or we start a new exercise routine at a fast pace (too much, too soon). We fail to get enough rest and recovery, which can lead to a chronic, overuse injuries. Make sure to include an easy warm up of 5-10 minutes, before moving up to your training heart rate (THR or known as Target Heart Rate). A 5-10 minute cool down after your training may result in faster recovery and less muscle fatigue. If you stretch, this is the best time (at cool down), because your muscles are warm and flexible and the risk of injury is low.

Make sure to know your THR. I feel that I did my job when my students reach a goal of 75% of their Training Heart Rate. I like to have my students fall between the fat burning zone and cardio zone. Anything above 80% is considered the cardio zone. More on THR will be discussed in a later eNewsletter. Of course, when you want add a few full cardio days (or any type of fitness program), talk with your Physician.

Stay Motivated If you are starting your fitness program later in life or for the first time in your life, you may find that it doesn't come easily. Keep in mind that you are doing this for fun and for your life-long health. You don't need to be competitive to get positive health benefits, so take it easy and have fun!

Listen to Your Body and Adjust Your Expectations! We are more prone to joint injuries as we get older, so if you notice any pain in the joints during a run, stop and walk, or if it is during a class, go into a slow march until you are able to continue. You might need to take your workouts at a slower pace on some days and if you have energy the following day, take it up a notch. Be a bit more forgiving on your body as you age. Remember, we are given only one body, so make sure you listen to the warning signs. Which would be better... to workout at 75% of your target heart rate or not workout at all because of overuse?

Rest and Recovery Rest and recovery is important for everyone, but as we age, rest is even more critical to injury prevention and performance gains. You may find that instead of one recovery day after a hard-training, you may need two days to completely recover. Know your body!

Add Strength Training Maintaining muscle strength can help as we age. All it takes is one to two 30 minute weight-training sessions per week, to keep muscles strong. Include both upper- and- lower-body exercises, and lift weights that are 60 percent of your one rep maximum.

As we age, muscle strength declines. Between the ages of 25 and 80 years, some of our decline in muscle mass is due to inactivity. We can lose up to one-half of our strength and muscle mass! Participating in strength training has many positive benefits for our health. Strength training increases bone density. It have been shown to reduce the risk for numerous chronic diseases including diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis and arthritis. On top of that, strength training has been shown to have many positive effects on psychological health such as reduced depression, improved sleep and greater sense of well-being. Furthermore, strength training is helpful in maintaining a healthy weight.

Stay Hydrated As we age, your thirst mechanism becomes less acute and you may not feel as thirsty. One easy way to tell if you are getting enough fluid is to make sure your urine is a light color and not dark or concentrated.

Improve Your Balance and Flexibility You guessed it. Both decreases as we age. In general, as we grow older, we experience a decrease in strength, balance and coordination. Balance exercises help prevent falls, not an uncommon problem in older adults. Falling is a major cause of broken hips and other injuries that often lead to disability and loss of independence. Some balance exercises build up your leg muscles, while other exercises focus on your stability.

Examples of balance exercises include several strength exercises for the lower body such as side leg raises and toe stands, as well as stability exercises such as heel-to-toe walking and the stork pose (standing on one foot with arms held out to the side). The best balance exercise that I can recommend is Tai Chi. Please continue to read below...

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one of every three Americans over the age of 65 falls each year, and among individuals 65-84, falls account for 87% of all fractures and are the second leading cause of spinal cord and brain injury. The good news is that physical activity can improve balance and reduce the risk of falling. In one study of 256 older adults (70 to 92 years of age, average age 77) who did Tai Chi for six months, there were 52% fewer falls in the individuals who did Tai Chi compared to those who didn't, and there were fewer falls overall among the individuals who did Tai Chi compared to those who didn't (28% versus 46%).

The bottom-line, keep exercising. Cardio and Strength Training should be a regular part of your fitness program. Add a class like yoga, ZEN™, or Tai Chi to your program too. Listen to your body. Make sure to exercise your brain and eat well too!

Chrysler Eminem Super Bowl Commercial - Imported From Detroit

2011-03-24T10:37:00.000-04:00

Eminem ''Letter to Detroit'' In 2009 CBS Sports NCAA Final Four Show (In...

2011-03-24T10:36:00.000-04:00

Detroit in the News Again...

2011-03-11T09:43:00.006-05:00

News Flash... Now Detroit is the Angriest City in America. Wow, not only are we (Detroit) the most violent city, fattest city and most illiterate city, now Detroit is the most angriest! Go Figure LOL

Since the recent reports are talking about the city of Detroit only (and not the surrounding communities) I wanted to voice my personal opinion on the recent news on Detroit...

Detroiters commit crime with one another - Stop the dang crime altogether! Instead, take pride in your community and make a positive change!!! Take that negative energy and turn it into something good. Yes we all have something to be angry about, so don't take it out on your community or the people close to you, reverse that anger into something that you could rejoice about later!

The housing is so poor and lacking in Detroit, because of the dang crime! People want to get far away from it (I know I did!) Stop vandalizing your own neighborhoods and make it beautiful so people want to come back! Dang, even the city workers, police, and business owners do not want to live in Detroit because of the above! Or should I add... It is BECAUSE of the City Government that adds to this mess??! Clean up the city and tear down the abandon buildings!

What about the Detroit Schools? There is a ripple effect here... Crime makes the people move far away.... neighborhoods have abandon homes... so, OF COURSE there are hardly any children attending the Detroit schools because of it! WAKE up people! These beautiful children of Detroit will be our next Leaders if you treat them right! Think of our children people! We still have a few children left in the community that attend or could attend school... make sure these children can get an education!

Most of the schools that I attended in Detroit are GONE! Someone I know very well could have written a book on the Education system in Detroit! (Well, actually she was going to, but never did - Identity withheld). This person had so much evidence on the corruption of the Detroit educational system, that it could have torn down the entire system back then! Now it has gotten so out of control that the news media is finally starting to notice... However, is it too late? Do the community care anymore?

Reminiscing: I am a native Detroiter and proud of it, however, back in my day it was getting real bad. Hate crime was all over the place and people could not get far away from Detroit. People thought that racial wars were among the whites and blacks only, but that was far from the truth! I am Asian. I hardly had any white friends, because I was a "chink" to them. In my own race, most Asians hated me too, because I was considered a "Twinkie". Most of my friends were Latino or Black.

Living in Detroit was not that bad back then. Although my siblings and I had major racism against us and the living environment was limited to us, the neighborhoods had houses full of families. Children used to play outside and people used to take care of their own properties. There used to be school buses full of children. The school yards had children playing in them and the classrooms were full.

I attended mostly Detroit schools. I graduated from Chadsey High School in Detroit. We had some great teachers and the education was very good. Because of my childhood, I never knew where my next meal would come from or if I had a place to call "home". I planned my 12th grade well because of it. I made myself attend day and evening classes to get out of high school early. I KNEW if I did not attend high school in the day and in the evening, I would not graduate. I graduated 6 months early. Right after I did, I had nowhere to live, but that is a different story.....

I feel, it starts at home. If one does not have a "home life", it will have to start from within. If one is too young to make any decision, it starts with someone who is in their lives who cares. It starts with how strong one feels about something. I also feel it is up to the community to make sure their children attend school to get their education, no matter where one lives! It is up to the community to clean it up and take pride. If there is a will, there is a way. Period.

Back in my day, if you did not have a goal to "get out of Detroit", you fell into the melting, sink hole.... Only Detroiters know what I am talking about when I say that. I hate to say this, but that statement is true for today too.

So the question is... How do we take back Detroit and make it into a city where people WANT TO go to and live in? Slowly the Detroit government corruption is getting cleaned up, but not fast enough! The people are suffering. The children are suffering. What does one do? It has to start within the community FIRST.

Weight Loss After 40: Why It's So Hard -- and What Works

2011-01-13T23:28:00.000-05:00

Weight Loss After 40: Why It's So Hard -- and What Works

2011... A New Year... A New Goal?

2010-12-29T21:21:00.008-05:00

Okay... it is 2011 and it is that time of the year where a lot of people are making their New Year's Resolution.... Are you one of them? Are you looking to add fitness into your life? Eat healthier? Stop smoking?
The big question is... Do you stick to your New Year's Resolution or are you like 90% of Americans who unfortunately fail at keeping them?
Why wait for the New Year?
Let's head in the right direction.... Right now! Stop talking and put action to your words!

My new motto...WHY WAIT?

1. Stop stressing yourself out by trying to achieve a high goal. Take baby steps at first. If you go at something real fast, your odds for failure increase. Taking one step at a time will keep you focused and motivated.
If you are seeking to...
• Lose weight... How long did it take you to gain the weight?
• Stop smoking... How long have you been smoking?
• Couch Potato... How long have you been sitting around doing nothing for your health and fitness?
• How long have you let your brain sit on the pause button?

Answer: You have most likely been doing it for some time.
Solution: Don't expect overnight miracles. It took some time to gain the weight... smoke those cigarettes, or sit around and do nothing for your body or mind... Now it will take some time to see results.

2. Reward yourself. Give yourself a little treat at the end of each month. It can be anything! Make it a small victory reward... nothing too big! Maybe a small live plant, fresh cut flowers, a small, child-size, low-fat ice cream cone, just to name a few. Perhaps you can reward yourself with a relaxing massage or a pedicure? Anything to say "Hey... I am worth it!

3. I do not believe in diets. I believe in small portions and adding more activity to your routine. Personally, I feel diets are doomed for failure. Eat less of the bad stuff and more of the good. Period. Eat only a handful and control your portions. Don't eat late at night, unless you have no choice because you work midnights. For the Ladies....If you have PMS and you are craving for those salty foods or sweets, allow yourself to have a small portion. If you do not, you will crave for it so much that you will eat more than you realized! This is what I do when I crave chocolate (ooohhh how I LOVE dark chocolate!), I buy the "mini-bite size variety bags of chocolate candy bars". When I have a craving, I am able to eat one of the mini-bite size chocolate bars and be totally satisfied!

4. Try something new! Let's admit it.... if it isn't fun... we lose interest and we are back to square one! Take up a new hobby... Take a new fitness class - something that you never thought about doing, but would like to try.... at least once.....
I remember the story of my grandfather... He had to close his laundry store and was very bored and lonely. He decided to try an art class and found out THAT HE HAD TALENT! He started painting and had a hidden talent that he never knew he had! (In fact, most of my family has talent in the arts and music!)

5. Think positive and stay positive. It is VERY easy to think negatively when you feel the world around us is crashing, but find the good from within. Wake up with a smile and change your attitude. I promise this will work! Think of the good in people. Use every opportunity to channel every thought to a good thought. you can just as easily as you ....can't

Okay... what gives me the right to offer advice? Some of you do not know about my childhood. Most of you think that my life consisted of being happy, easy, and funny most of the time.... That is far from the truth! I struggle with things too and continue to work extremely hard everyday. When I walk into the classroom (and I tell this to our team at training too), I leave everything at the door and walk into the room with a big smile. If I had a rough day or the energy was not there, I kept my attitude positive and energy high for my students. By the time the class is over, I walk out feeling blessed and happy. If you only knew the type of past that I had, you would wonder how I managed to stay alive and how I am capable of giving the advice AND living by my own advice!

Have faith in yourself and continue to be thankful for every breath you take and every step you take...because you are worth it. Stand tall my friend.... Like Donna always says... treat your body like a temple, because you are worth it! Have a blessed 2011 and take each occasion, obstacle, promotion, success, failure...etc... as a new chapter in your life.

Still shot of Donna from our "Fit Tips Fill-Ins"

Thank you....

2010-12-05T18:39:00.004-05:00

I thank those of you who understood my situation with this person and thank you for your kind words, (Wow, I did not realize people actually read my journal!). For the only person (Ms. M.F.), that did not know who this person was and did not know what happened.... "Ms. M.F.", If someone hurt you and you did everything you could to help make a difference for this person, you would feel the same as we did that were involved. She not only hurt me, but she hurt MANY people with her schemes. She did so many things to so many people and turn around and blame everyone else...... at the end, she was caught "with her hands in the cookie jar".

I just learned that this person went to TWO other companies and begged them to take her on as an Instructor-in-Training".... She gave me that same scheme and I FELL FOR IT!!! The source that told me this is the Owner of one of the companies! I guess you live and learn...

I thank you too, Ms. M. F. (IF there is indeed a Ms. M.F.) for taking the time to write to me... Perhaps my post hit too close to home for you? You were correct on a few things and as you can see, I made the adjustments to my post. Thank you.

Do you know Someone Like This?

2010-11-20T16:55:00.005-05:00

It is a shame... I helped her with whatever I could. I did this for over one year. Many people warned me about her since the day she came into my life. I did not listen. I truly thought she was a good person from the heart.

She convinced everyone around her that she is a good person. She kept telling me about her "strong faith". How she does everything by the Bible and how spiritual she is. If her God produces people like her, I would never open my doors to people like her ever again!

She lied to me and everyone around her and it hurt real bad, but I will get over it! She was energetic, with a big smile on her face, but as soon as she walked away, she is cruel and conniving.

I always listened to her complaining about how cruel the world is to her, She will make hints to saying "ooohhh I love that... ohhh I want that..." or repeat it until you finally give in to give it to her. IF it fails, she wants nothing to do with you.

She will use you until she no longer needs what you have to offer and move on to the next victim.

When she knows that she was caught in a lie or one of her schemes failed, she uses her crying tactics. When it did not work on me, she became angry. This is the strange part... she gives a great talk and have people feel sorry for her... Then she uses her OWN stories and do the same to other people!!!

Beware everyone.... This person is a snake in the dark. She will use the color of her skin to complain that life is unfair to her or create a pity party to hook you into feeling sorry for her. Her intentions are solely for selfish reasons!

I am sure you know of someone like this in your life. Walk away and keep your eyes wide open.

It runs in the family...

2010-09-12T20:54:00.003-04:00

What can I say??? hehehe My twin Donna and her daughter (my niece), Chrissy - It runs in the family! LOL

FINALLLLLLLLYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

2010-08-06T21:51:00.002-04:00

Well, Z-Box Fitness is our legal trademark as of August 4, 2010! It took over one year of going back and forth with the government! At one time, I was so depressed and frustrated because we worked so hard at Z-Box and they were trying to deny us the trademark rights.... With determination and never giving up, WE WON! AAAHHHH the feeling is awesome! I pray good things will happen with Z-Box Fitness and people will see what a great program it IS!

Donna designed the website - Check it out! http://www.z-boxfitness.com

2010-07-29T22:26:00.005-04:00

Left Photo: I guess I have been making faces for years... This is Jill with me. She used to work at Sarah Fisher when Donna and I lived there. This picture was taken in the Sarah Fisher Gym, at a Halloween Party they were having for the children. I think the year was 1974 or 1975?

Right Photo: We caught up with each other 20 years later!!! She had this picture with her (the left one) and I was surprised that someone actually had a picture of me making a face and kept it for all these years!!!! hehehehe Thank you Jill for sharing this with me. We saw each other in 2009. I look forward to seeing Jill again!!!

Click on the photo for a larger view

In Response to Shakira's WAKA WAKA: Let's All Dance For 1GOAL, Debbie Lim

2010-06-24T08:24:00.000-04:00

Be Thankful

2010-06-24T07:31:00.003-04:00

The Mind

2010-06-24T07:04:00.005-04:00

The Mind

Today I plan to concentrate on how we present ourselves to others. I have noticed, the closer that I get to 50, the more I witness too many friends and family members suffering from illness or death. Let's face it... as every year passes us by, we realize there are more aches and pain and more memory loss... So, with that being said... Live as though this is the last day of your life, for this very second is now part of your past.

For the Mind: As I age, my mind is changing fast... It is harder to remember things... I have to read emails twice or more or else I will not be able to reply properly because I overlooked something! So many times I catch myself standing somewhere forgetting WHY I went there in the first place - I do that in a conversation too - I would be in mid-sentence and totally forget what the heck I was talking about! I can only laugh at myself, because I don't want to mess up my makeup and cry about it!

In my mind, I tell myself everyday to think positive. I believe in mind over matter. Sometimes it is hard, but most of the time it seems to work. If you carry yourself in a positive way, it shows in your posture, attitude, and overall appearance. As with negativity, unfortunately it shows the world that too!

Your self-image might include past trauma, abuse, or injury. Negative thoughts and feelings might be trapped in your body, holding you back from better health. Are you stuck in a holding pattern of negativity and self-doubt? I say...Take it to the door, and walk away from it! That is what I did! I work with my past trauma and abuse and changed it into something positive! Whenever my mind starts to wonder, I tell myself... IF I were able to live my life... RIGHT NOW... the way it is NOW.... I would relive my life all over again... with the pain and abuse... just to get to this point in MY life again!

Do me a favor, take a few minutes one day and "people watch". Watch the people walking by you. Just by their appearance and the way they walk, shows so much of their personalities! Now look at yourself and see how you project yourself to the public. How will others see you? Don't give me the excuse.... I don't care what others say about me attitude, because no matter what we say... WE DO CARE!

• Hold your head up high, not in a conceited attitude, but in self-confidence.

• Hold your abdominals in. (Remember the 24/7 abdominal workout that I told you about? By holding your abdominals in, it corrects your posture and gives you a flair of self-confidence.)

• SMILE and LAUGH a LOT! Don't take life so serious! What is the purpose of walking around with a frown? Smile... just because! Your smile and laughter will rub off on someone else without you realizing it!

• Wake up EVERY MORNING with at least ONE positive sentence to self! Say at least one thing about yourself that you like! e.g., This morning I woke up at 5:00am and I heard the birds singing outside of my bedroom window. Since I cannot sleep, I decided to get up and open my window in my office and hear the birds and my water fountain while I sit here and write this.... Ahhh such a beautiful morning with nature surrounding me! (Why be grumpy and have an attitude because I cannot sleep! It IS a beautiful morning and I thank God for giving it to me!)

• Go to bed EVERY NIGHT and think of ONE positive thing that happened to you that day. e.g., Most of you know the severe pain I have been having with my jaw and teeth... Even with this pain, I go to bed with this being part of my thoughts... I am blessed to have my life... I am also happy to be able to have less pain today and was able to manage the pain today....by January 2011, I will be able to have my big smile back....

What will your inner thoughts tell everyone in your appearance today?

NEXT FM eNEWSLETTER will cover... For Fitness & Health

The Pain of It!

2010-05-19T10:14:00.007-04:00

I had some major oral surgery Friday morning. Dr. Boutros and his Assistant, DJ are the best and such caring people! I truly felt comfortable with them! I had one dental inplant (this is my 3rd now) and three extractions. One of the extractions was my lower right wisdom tooth. I was told all three extractions were extremely difficult. What should have taken one to 1.5 hours, took two hours in surgery.

I have been in severe pain since Friday! I am normally a tough girl! I normally can take anything and nothing could stop me... until now! Perhaps it is old age creeping up on me....

THANK GOD for Nene taking over my classes this week! What am I going to do without Nene! She has been such a blessing! The entire team has been wonderful! I feel so blessed!

This is Day 6: I called the doctors office again this morning and told them that I was not expecting this pain to stay with me so long... They said that they are not surprised!! They should have warn us... Nino said (when we were walking out), that they kept giving him a strange face and letting him know by their facial expressions, "you must get her meds as soon as you can... she will need it.."

I wished they could have warned me of this pain, it would have been easier to deal with. I can take pain BUT when the pain feels like someone is cutting off my jaw, from ear-to-ear, and it is way tooo intense! I know I must sound like a baby, but those that know me, know that I can teach (literally) with a broken foot - The only time my life takes a "pause" is if I feel nausea... That is the only time I have to stop what I am doing and use mind over matter... anything else I normally can deal with.

Am I glad I did this? LOLOLOL Nino asked me that this morning! LOLOL He said IF you knew it was going to be like this, would you have done it? The answer... NO! LOL Seriously, I am glad to get this over with. ONE more Implant to get in 3-4 months and I will be fine for a long time! Dang, I never thought I would go through the dental implant thingy again, but I have no choice at this point.

I am going to act like it is a normal day today.... I plan to cook a slow-cooked yummy meal for Nino and Tati tonight. In class, I plan to teach with hand cueing only.... My stiches are healing nicely and I do not have any swolleness, only the pain of something sawing off my jaw at the bones under my ears... speaking of ears.... my right ear has a lot of pain too. I still cannot eat anything but soup, icecream and soft toast... I have to eat the toast with my front teeth.

Enough complaining... this will be over with soon!

Something To Think About

2010-05-13T19:17:00.003-04:00

This is true story that should make all of us think..... Thank you Braden for sending this to me! :-)

THE SITUATION

In Washington, DC, at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, this man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After about 3 minutes, a middle-aged man noticed that there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds, and then he hurried on to meet his schedule.

About 4 minutes later:
The violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

At 6 minutes:
A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

At 10 minutes:
A 3-year old boy stopped, but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head the whole time. This action was repeated by several other children, but every parent - without exception - forced their children to move on quickly.

At 45 minutes:
The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.

After 1 hour:
He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed and no one applauded. There was no recognition at all.

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before, Joshua Bell sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 each to sit and listen to him play the same music.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell, playing incognito in the D.C. Metro Station, was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities.

This experiment raised several questions:
*In a common-place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?

*If so, do we stop to appreciate it?

*Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made . . .

How many other things are we missing as we rush through life?

Feedback on my article in the CoSoZo Living Magazine & my Reply

2010-05-11T15:15:00.003-04:00

Hi Debbie,

One of the members where I teach Zumba brought me the article you wrote Zumba Craze Hits Michigan. I just read it and had to send you some feedback.

I thought the article was great in that it encourages people to consider Zumba, the fun workout, the fabulous aerobic activity, etc. I also loved that you boasted that the Zumba Program is currently being taught at over 50,000 locations, etc. All in all it was great. I do, however, TOTALLY disagree with the paragraph starting with Most Zumba instructors without a fitness background face away from their students.... I could not disagree with your statement more. There is no written rules about this in the Zumba instructors notes and the proof is really in the pudding. In other words, what does the student/member really prefer? Whether you believe this or not, students find it much easier to follow when the instructor is facing the same direction that they are. It has nothing to do with 'looking at someones' buttocks' and because you feel it's a "no-no" doesn't make it the rule. I personally face the mirrors as do many other great Zumba teachers and speaking for myself, I am not "busy looking at myself and not keeping an eye on the students". My eyes, facing the mirror, are on the students' feet and hands and once in awhile on their eyes - but not very often. I never use a microphone (AND I've noticed that many fitness teachers can't seem to let go of their microphones to teach Zumba the way Beto wants it to be taught) . The students/members are not there to get personal with me during the Zumba class & nobody is there for any sort of show business. They are there to get a workout and if it's enthusiastic, fun, easy to follow & gracious..... it's Zumba! and it's all good.

I appreciate the fact that you have several years in the fitness industry and you feel you are more than savvy when it comes to experiences but to state your personal opinion (the Zumba instructor facing the mirror as a "no-no" ) as some sort of rule is not fair at all. It's your opinion only & I feel you should have qualified that (as you did in the 3rd paragraph from the end of the article.

Zumba is supposed to be easy, fun, safe, encouraging, addictive.... My classes are packed full of all age groups, I have been teaching Zumba for over 2 years and I ALWAYS face the mirrors. My students would not want it any other way (and they don't hesitate to remind me if I do face them).

I love that you pointed out that 'Zumba is growing extremely fast' and it's 'not just a fad'. In an effort to keep it from being a fad, I am constantly adding new songs for the students/members and I'm sure you are too. I see the "fake" stuff out there as you do and probably like you, I speak up to try to keep the fake stuff from watering down the Zumba name and the foundation for what Beto built the name on. That's our responsibility to the whole Zumba program. I know you agree with that.

Thank you for taking time to read my little note. Thanks for spreading the good word about Zumba!

Karen A
--------------------------------------------

MY REPLY:

Thank you for your email Karen. I appreciate your feedback on the article, however, when I write something, I have proof to back it up.

FACTS:
First, since you base this on Zumba, have you ever attended any of Beto's Masterclasses/workshops? Beto teaches all of his classes facing the students and never faces away from his students. If you've noticed, Beto only turns around when he has a difficult step to demonstrate. In addition, if you watch his live classes from the earlier ZIN, Beto has mirrors.... is he facing the mirrors or his students? Again, with the harder moves, he faces away and he will face the students after the demonstration. I have never seen or heard of any Masterclass, Presenters, Workshops that will conduct it facing away from their students/participants.

Next, have you attended any of the current Zumba workshops? In all of the Zumba workshops the ZES stresses, "to face your students, because you want your class to feel like a party and how can it when your butt is facing them throughout the class?" If you do not believe me, please contact any ZES. Of course, if you need to face away from your students, it is your choice, however, it is bad practice in any fitness class.

It may be hard for some Instructors to face their classes.... maybe they are new to fitness or they find it very hard to cue from "their students left and right". Perhaps the room is too small and the only way an Instructor feels comfortable teaching is the same way as their students. Having direct eye contact with the students and giving them verbal and hand cueing is important and it is a great way to monitor the students and if the one in the back roll needs assist If you need to... teaching both ways could be beneficial

Performing the Heimlich maneuver to a choking victim is also a personal opinion, but one that is almost universally viewed as the correct PROCEDURE to increase the odds of success for a choking victim.

I would now like to add the fitness facts to why Instructors should not face away from their students:

ACE, p217 –
“When leading group exercise, face the class as often as possible, using mirroring techniques, such as moving to the participants’ left when directing them to the right. An instructor can only monitor class safety by watching all participants at all times. All cues should be precise and timely.”

Now my Personal Opinion:
It is without a doubt a good thing to look directly at individuals - both new participants and regulars. Facing the group forces you to make direct eye contact with your students, so that's plus ONE for facing your students. Most importantly, facing the student allows the instructor real time feedback for the cardinal signs of potential health problems of their students. i.e. redness, fatigue, fainting, etc.
A large studio, utilizing an elevated stage for the instructor, offers reason #2 for teaching mirror image. Not only does it allow you direct eye contact with people in the back row, it just feels rude to have your students looking eye level at your rear end for an hour. So, particularly with an elevated teaching platform, that's plus TWO for teaching facing your students. of course, in a very small studio it may be hard to teach 100% facing your students, so, going back and forth from mirror image to facing away is fine... as long as your keep that connection with your students.

Speaking of "connection", I feel you are incorrect when you state, "...The students/members are not there to get personal with me during the Zumba class & nobody is there for any sort of show business. They are there to get a workout and if it's enthusiastic, fun, easy to follow & gracious... "I would hate to attend any type of class if I do not have a connection with my Instructor! If she is impersonal, I would walk right out of the classroom! As for "Show Business", I am not sure what you are referring to, but I rather have a fun class with a fun Instructor in stead of one that is impersonal, afterall, the motto of Zumba is "Join the party"...What party have you ever gone to where the host doesn't talk to their guests?

When I attend a class, I am there for a workout and for some people "working out", most of the time means... boring... Perhaps it is something that you believe in when it comes to the students. For our company, training and hiring Instructors to be part of Fitness Motivators means that they MUST have a great personality to be consider as part of our team. I am happy your classes are packed - Different cities and locations of classes have different clienteles.

Some Zumba Instructors may feel what I wrote is a personal attack on them because they may not have a fitness background. That was not the intent of my statment, as has become abundantly clear throughout this letter, I was merely passing on the standards set forth and practiced by most fitness pros.

In Better Health & Fitness,
Debbie Lim

Zumba Craze Hits Michigan

2010-05-11T15:14:00.001-04:00

Zumba Craze Hits Michigan

Posted using ShareThis

Stats for my website... Does anyone know.....

2010-03-11T10:50:00.004-05:00

Does anyone know anything about web stats? I have over 4.2 millions hits at my personal website and would like to know if this is true? Below are the stats that my web server has on it... Perhaps the "hits" are added up each time someone clicks on a page at my website? Maybe someone has a link to my site (using a photo perhaps??) that is making each hit to my total hits? Either way, I feel these numbers are excellent considering this is a personal website.... Any comments would be appreciated!! THANK YOU!

General Summary
1. Host name debbielim.com
2. Host URL http://www.debbielim.com
3. Program start time Mar 10, 2010 22:31
4. Time of first request Feb 22, 2005 00:34
5. Time of last request Mar 10, 2010 23:56
6. Time last 7 days lasts until Mar 10, 2010 22:31
7. Successful server requests 4,253,737 Requests
8. Successful requests in last 7 days 71,654 Requests
9. Logfile lines without status code 99,699 Lines
10. Logfile lines without status code in last 7 days 0 Lines
11. Successful requests for pages 218,091 Requests for pages
12. Successful requests for pages in last 7 days 2,414 Requests for pages
13. Distinct files requested 4,292 Files
14. Distinct files requested in last 7 days 858 Files
15. Distinct hosts served 49,773 Hosts
16. Distinct hosts served in last 7 days 1,198 Hosts
17. Unwanted lines in the logfile 912 Lines
18. Total data transferred 100.753 GB
19. Total data transferred in last 7 days 805.740 MB

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This report was generated on March 10, 2010 22:31.
Report time frame February 22, 2005 00:34 to March 10, 2010 23:56.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
END

I am Healthy and Fit , so WHY........

2010-03-04T22:33:00.025-05:00

Okay… This is somewhat personal, but something has been going on with me for a few years now and I need to write it down for proof later. I may sound crazy, but hear me out…

First, let’s look at my health and fitness stats:
• For my age, I am considered within my normal weight, maybe a few pounds lighter, but perfect for my size and height (that I am comfortable with). For my height, 136 – 144 lbs is average (I am lower in weight)
• My resting heart rate is between 54-59 bpm. My heart rate, when resting, gets as low as 48 bpm.
• My blood pressure is perfect and on the low end – 120/60 or 120/70 – sometimes it could go on the higher end of “normal” when I am at the doctor’s office getting a reading.
• My average heart rate during exercise is 142-160 bpm
• My maximum heart rate (average) while exercising is between 172 and 179.
• My BMI is within normal-lower end range.
• I work out at least 6 times per week and add weights once or twice per week. I plan to join a gym for more weight training, but teach too many classes to get around to it. I get most of my workouts teaching my classes which is mostly a cardio workout.
• I do not drink alcohol (never in my life for that matter), no recreation drugs, and I do not smoke.
• I have asthma, BUT it is not that bad. I use my inhaler sometimes before class when I feel tightness in my chest – nothing major. I have never been hospitalized for it.
• I have allergies that is minor and I can control it with OTC meds.
• I feel I am in excellent health. Maybe some problems with female stuff, but nothing I cannot deal with.

For exercise and for my age, I should aim for a target heart rate of 120 – 155 bpm and those numbers are for “higher than average fitness levels – vigorous exercise. From my stats above, it is on the average of 142-172 bpm when I am teaching my classes!
The only emergency I ever had in my adult life, I had a blood transfusion, because of being severely anemic (November 2007 my hemoglobin was 6.5)

I drink mostly water and one cup of coffee in the early morning (maybe a second cup of coffee before 5:00 pm). I drink coke only when we go out to eat, but that is it. I drink green tea or ginger tea daily. I try to eat healthy when I remember to eat. I use my infrared sauna a few times per week for 50 minutes at 130 degrees or more. I do not take vitamins.

Mentally, I am a very positive person. I hate going to the doctors and I consider myself as a “bad patient”, because I hate medicines and feel medical doctors pass out whatever the Pharmacy Reps give them… just because.

I do have severe insomnia and am currently trying to find ways to help it, but I do function very well for someone that does not sleep that much! Maybe with less than 5 hours of sleep – sometimes 3 hours – is enough for me???

----------------------------------

Okay… ya got the picture of my health and fitness… ya will see why I am confused in my next paragraph and would LOVE to hear any feedback on this…. BUT FIRST…

One more thing....

Within a few short months ago, I had a stress test, EKG, blood work, ultrasound on my heart, AND everything came back NORMAL!

My dilemma: When I walk up my stairs from being downstairs or anywhere going up the stairs, I have such pain in my legs that I have to stop wherever I am and lay down or sit down (on the floor, top stairs…anywhere) for a few minutes and then I am okay. My thighs burn really bad...I feel like my legs are going to give out on me and I will become paralyzed. It is hard to breathe and my heart is beating out of my chest! I feel faint and out of breath for a minute or so and then I am back to normal like nothing has happened!!! I have only 11 steps downstairs and dread those steps, because of what happens to me every time!

Now look at these pictures! Yepper… those are my hands!! (Click on photo for a larger image) I am NOT sure if this has anything to do with my dilemma from above, but I wanted to add this into the equation.

In 2004 my hands turned such a deadly gray that I had my sister take these pictures as proof!!!! I did NOT have any symptoms! I was taking a shower and noticed that my hands were a “dead gray”. I tried to stay calm and asked my daughter to come into the bathroom and see if she noticed anything… She saw it too! I got out of the shower and had my sister take these pictures. By the time these pictures were taken, my left hand was almost back to normal. Since April 2004 my hands still get gray, but not enough to worry about… it is a slight discoloration and again… NO symptoms!

The doctors cannot find the reason for this, but I know deep within that it has something to do with my circulation. We probably will not know what the problem is until something drastic happens and then “ooohh… that is why….. Remember when…”

So, if anyone knows why this is happening or if they know of someone that is going through this... I would love to hear the outcome!

Heart Rate Monitor Reading Results from class...

2010-03-02T21:37:00.007-05:00

From now on I will post the Date/Class/Calories Burned/Total Time/Avg Heart Rate during class/Max Heart Rate during class under "Class Calorie Counting". Sometimes I forget to wear my Heart Rate Monitor, but most of the time I do wear it in class. Below are some numbers that I already had before I start this part of my blog:
Remember - If the time is short, it means I forgot to turn on my monitor and the reading is for that time frame only.

Trinity: 1/13/2010 - 33 min./498c/171-avg/181-max = 10% fat
Grant: 1/13/2010 - 44 min./588c/164-avg/175-max = 15% fat
Plymouth: 1/14/2010 - 44 min./559c/1624-avg/172-max = 20% fat
Livonia: 1/19/2010 - 42 min./559c/165-avg/173-max = 15% fat
Trinity: 1/20/2010 - 44 min./506c/169-avg/151-max = 45% fat
Grant: 1/20/2010 - 44 min./567c/161-avg/171-max 85% fat!
Novi: 1/25/2010 - 42 min./451c/147-avg/164-max 30% fat
Grant (attending class/not teaching): 1/30/2010 - 442 min./439c/141-avg/186-max 35% fat

Fit 4 Forty+ - Hair Analysis Part I

2010-03-01T22:32:00.003-05:00

I have decided to do something different in each FM newsletters. Instead of writing articles about things, I have decided to put myself through the tests. I plan to write about things that I plan to improve or make needed changes in my life and give you my feedback on my research.

Therefore, today I will talk about “Hair Analysis”. At our clinic, we give our patients options on different tests that could be valuable to their health and wellness. We have included the Hair Analysis at our clinic with amazing results for our patients! I decided that I should do this test, see what my results are. If my results come back with some needed changes in my life, I will make the adjustments and see what happens.

First, we need to know what a Hair Analysis is and what it can do for us. Hair analysis measures the mineral content of your hair. Mineral content of the hair reflects mineral content of the body's tissues. If a mineral deficiency or excess exists in the hair, it usually indicates a mineral deficiency or excess within the body. Conditions, which may result or be aggravated by a mineral imbalance, include depression, headaches, hypertension, arthritis, hypoglycemia and hyperactivity.

This test is given by your Primary Care Physician or at our clinic, given by my husband. Make sure you do not order your test online. Order them from your Physician (or my husband) to make sure you receive an authentic test.

The hair is cut easily and painlessly. Your hair is obtained by cutting the first inch and one-half of growth closest to the scalp at the nape of the neck, at each sides of the temple, and the top-rear of the scalp. Do not worry, the doctor will not take a huge chunk of hair, but only a few strands (4 to 6 to be exact) at each locations. Your hair will need to be free of hair color or bleaching for at least six weeks. The day of the test, your hair must be free of any products. Make sure you know the hair shampoo and conditioner brand that you are currently using. You will also need to let your doctor know of any medication and OTC meds you are taking too… It is best to have all of this in writing to help with the process. The test and questionnaire is then sent to the lab without special handling requirements.

This test measures the mineral content of the hair. The sampled hair is prepared in a licensed clinical laboratory through a series of chemical and high temperature digestive procedures. Testing is performed using highly sophisticated equipment and methods to achieve the most accurate and precise result

Clinical results have shown that a properly obtained sample can give an indication of mineral status and toxic metal accumulation following long term or even acute exposure. I know this, because a few of our patients were indeed shocked at what their results were! Of course, I cannot say which patients, but I will give you one example that I know of….

“Patient A” has had multiple complaints for the last three years. She went to her Doctor and had numerous tests done. The diagnosis was from “all in her head” to “I don’t know”. She has been a patient of my husbands for a short time and he decided to ask her to take this test “and just see what happens”. Her results came back with an extremely high level of arsenic!

My husband then asked her to get her water tested… She did. The tests came back with high levels of arsenic! They gave her a sheet with different symptoms that she could experience with and she had ALL of the symptoms!!! FINALLY after three years of doctors, tests, and false diagnosis, she is getting better because of MY husband!

I took the test Monday, February 22, 2010 and waiting for the results. For the updates and details of my results, read it at my blog. You will be able to find my blog link at my www.debbielim.com The information written here will be at my blog with the updates as soon as my results are in.

Next newsletter I plan to write about insomnia. I suffer from insomnia and look forward to seeing if the information I found ill help me… stayed tuned.

2010-02-26T15:28:00.009-05:00

This Photo: This is Julio (DOD: Feb 20, 2007) and Jasmine (DOD: Feb 25, 2010) at a happier time in their lives. October 2006.

I cannot get motivated today. Thank God I rescheduled my appointment with Ann Arbor, because my mood is not that well today. It was so hard to put my little Jasmine down yesterday. For those of you that are dog lovers, you will understand my pain.
At 2:20pm, Nino and I had to let Jasmine go. She was ready. We were not ready to let her go. We said our goodbyes to her and thought back to the wonderful years she gave us.

She has been bedridden since this Saturday, February 20th - the 3-year anniversary date of Julio's death. She could hardly walk and gave up on eating. She was drinking water and chicken broth until yesterday when she did not accept anything. We carried her to each room that we were in, because she loved to be with us. Wednesday evening, after my classes I did my normal work - working on the clinic bookkeeping..... I kept Jasmine with Nino and did not think anything else... she was content and I did not want to move her.

Next thing I knew, Nino came running into the computer room to find Jasmine! There she was... in the middle of the computer room barely breathing and weak.... SHE must have crawled all the way into the computer room to be with ME! We even have a step in our hallway that she had to climb over to get to me! It made me feel so loved, but at the same time, it made me cry so much. She had this need to be with me and she did everything within her strength to make that happen.... I was so engrossed in my work that I never expected Jasmine to come to me! It made my heart drop and made me love her so much more than I already did. I feel that was her last gift to me. She gave me unconditional love even until the end. I pray to God that I gave her unconditional love too and that I did everything to make her life good for almost 14 years.

I MUST get out of this funk....I MUST know that this is the cycle of life. Soon it will be me, for we have no guarantees in life, but death.
This photo: Jasmine playing with Pico when he was a baby. Needless to say, Pico has been VERY depressed and has been looking ands sniffing around for Jasmine since last night.

My little Yorkie Girl...

2010-02-22T21:54:00.006-05:00

I took this picture from my Blackberry... We were driving back from the Vets today... I was happy that she was coming home... we thought that she was going to be put down and boyyyy I was happy to still have her! We had our first severe snow storm of the season today. Thank God for a Wrangler!

Feb 22, 2010 Nino and I took Jasmine to the VET today and we are trying one more thing. He gave her an antibiotics shot. He said she should start feeling better by this evening and maybe start eating some food. It is 10:20 pm and she is still the same. She cannot stand... Wait.... just now....she did go outside for a few minutes! I gave her some water just now! She was drinking it! I tried to give her some treats or food, but she will not eat. Please Lord, either make Jasmine well or let her go peacefully without any pain. She is 13.5 years old and she knows that she is loved and she has been a blessing in our lives.

My Little Jasmine

2010-02-20T23:59:00.002-05:00

Jasmine

You know the old saying... Quiet before the storm? I believe that is happening right now with my sweet little Jasmine. Jasmine has a severe collapsed trachea. This is very common for little Yorkie breeds. For the last few months it has been very bad for her. I even posted a video on YouTube to see what other Yorkie Lovers are doing about this and if anything has helped their dogs. Our VET tells us that Jasmine is not suffering and that it is basically like a "cough". Well, her "cough" is getting worse and almost every minute she is hacking or coughing severely..... that is.....until today.

She did not eat today... She is laying around and when she does get up, she just stands there. Her breathing is hard and her chest seems heavy. As I sit here in my home office, I can hear her breathing hard, but she seems very peaceful. She has not "coughed" or "hacked" the entire day. She has been very quiet.

Ms. Jazee Jasmine La Shong, born June 7, 1996. She will be 14 years old this June. My sister-in-law Judy, Tatiana, and I went to a Breeder in Perry, Georgia and picked her out. Tatiana was the one that actually picked her out. I smile thinking back at that day... Jasmine was the ugliest little puppy and Tatiana picked her because she wanted to make sure she had a good home to go to. It was the best thing, because Jasmine has been a wonderful dog. She is so beautiful and such a loving little soul.

Her partner Julio passed away exactly 3 years ago today (Feb 20, 2007). Julio was a gem too. I still miss little Julio and I still have an ache in my heart because of how he died.

I pray that Jasmine will be okay. I am hoping that she is quiet because she is just having a "bad day". Pico and Baby are constantly sniffing her and laying by her side. It is so touching on how they are looking out for Jasmine. I love them so much.... They may not be my human children, but I still see them as my little children... human or not.
Baby is sitting near Jasmine with worry in her eyes...
Pico and Baby kept checking up on her the entire day.

Timestamp: 3/6/2009 10:27:46 PM

2010-02-19T18:31:00.002-05:00

I am always thinking about my classes:

How to improve my teaching technique.
How to satisfy the needs of each student.
How to keep the students coming back for more.

I strive to succeed in every class that I teach. When I am up there in front of them, I look forward to their smiles, determination, and goals.

When I teach, I smile all the time (as they well know) because of many reasons…..

It makes me happy to see everyone getting into the class!
I laugh at myself when I KNOW I mess up and hopefully no one will know because I have that ugly smile plastered on my face!
I have to admit, I also like to watch the students… I like to see the expressions on some of their faces…. The way some of them move… I get a warm feeling in me and …yes, it makes me giggle inside!

No one knows this (except for my twin), right before every cool down, I pray. I thank God that the class was successful and I was able to teach it. After 29 years of teaching, I still get nervous and at times I am unsure of myself. That all passes when it is almost time to end the class, When I see the expression on their faces and my Heart Rate Monitor tells me that I succeeded in getting the HR up for the class, I felt it was a great class! After class, when the students come up to me and give me their feedback, it makes my day!

Speaking of my Heart Rate Monitor, I keep a daily log of the results. For someone my age, my Training Heart Rate should be 126-150 (50-85%). My maximum should be 173. At times in class, my HR hits the red zone (hitting over 215!). Something that is very dangerous for me, so that is why I wear my Monitor while teaching so that my students do not get that high! My average lately has been between 140 – 171bpm. Of course, Instructors exert themselves a lot higher than the students.

Below is a pretty good chart that someone could use as their guide. Polar created this chart. If anyone is reading this and
interested in learning more about their Resting Heart Rate and Target Heart, here are the links to my tips at my website:

Learn more about your Resting Heart Rate & Target Heart Rate at my website under "Fit Tips" www.debbielim.com

Timestamp: 3/2/2009 12:46:00 AM

2010-02-19T18:24:00.001-05:00

When I think about how life is... When we were young, we wanted to be older. Now that we are older, we want to be young again. I look and cannot believe how the years flew by. I cannot believe that my son will be middle-age next January and my daughter is turning 20 years old this year. I see things so differently nowadays too. What used to be important to me is not anymore.

For example, I am a cleaning fanatic. I still like everything clean, but I don't have to have things "put away or washed" right that minute. I used to move my furniture around at least every other month... or I would buy new furniture once every year. I used to paint the walls of any housethat I lived in every year too. Those days are gone now.

I am not sure if it is to "old age" or not, but now I am content with my furniture and my walls look pretty good too. I do plan to buy a new dinning room set, but not one that is the top of the line like I always did before. I just want a simple, "rustic-looking" wood set. Nothing big.... Oohhh but wait... I DO want my 20 year anniversary diamond ring. Hehehe I feel that I deserve that, plus if I do get one, it is something that I could pass down to my daughter. I was admiring one of my student's beautiful diamonds, but then I started thinking that I would be happy with just a wide diamond band. A simple, yet elegant diamond band.
Julio

I miss Julio. My little dog was such a beautiful little boy. Julio is the reason why we now have my new little guy and Ms. Diva. When we added him to our family over 12 years ago, he brought us such joy and love. I was looking at his pictures today and it made me so sad of how he passed away. He was such a quiet little dog. His health was getting poor, but he was still active and loving. When we found him in the driveway, it took so much away from my heart. I felt so guilty for months and still do. I do not know exactly what happened or who hurt him, but I feel responsible for his death. Now I make sure my little guys are with me at all times. I panic if I do not see my little guys when I call them in from outside. Everyday when I drive up the driveway, I think of Julio. He would have been 14 years old this year.

Nino wanted us to have another Yorkie because I was very depressed (he was too, but I could not stop crying for weeks). We ended up finding our new little guy. It took me a few weeks to get close to him. I did not want to get close to him, because of the fear of losing another dog. He did not replace Julio, but he filled a major void in my life. With the depression, a major incident that could not be avoided, nine months of dental work, and losing my friendship with someone who I thought was my best friend was overwhelming. I also had health problems. I had to have a blood transfusion and if I didn't, I was a high candidate of a heart attack (according to my doctor). My new little guy is the most loving dog we have ever had!

Jamine and a bunny we used to have, "Sha-Na-Na"

My new little guy in back and Ms. Diva

Okay... enough about my little dogs! I could go on and on about them! Now I know how people love their animals!!! I know how animals are like children and why people love them so much! We are so attached to our dogs! Our little girl, Ms. Diva will be one years old this week, March 3rd! Jasmine (Julio's partner) will be 13 this year! Wow!

WOW it is almost 1:00am! I was working on the Michigan Zumba website most of the day. I designed a new banner for it and it looks pretty good! I just have to update it with some more Instructors and clean it up a bit.

I better get ready for bed!

Timestamp: 2/27/2009 10:32:00 PM

2010-02-19T14:52:00.001-05:00

All I have to say is.............. WHY?

Timestamp: 2/26/2009 10:59:42 AM

2010-02-19T14:44:00.001-05:00

This entry will be pretty long... I was on my laptop last night and decided to write things that probably means nothing to anyone but bothered me with many questions.... So... here it is.... Just my point of view on different subjects:

Do we need more DRUGS? Haven’t you noticed all of the commercials in the last couple of years promoting prescription drugs? They say typical things that everyday normal people feel from one time to another…. Then they say, “Ask your Doctor to try this drug…” Then at the end of the commercial it states their Disclaimer… “Risk of heart attack… could be fatal…. Blood clots…. Blah… blah.. blah!” Don’t you ever wonder WHY these pharmaceutical companies do this? I know of two reason… 1. Some of these companies lose their patents or are on their way of losing their patents and need to find another way of how these drugs work for other “diagnosis”. 2. Money.
I remember when Zoloft was “the drug to cure depression”. Since the company was losing their patent on this drug (2006)…. Zoloft became the new PMS pill!!!!!! Lordy have mercy!!!!

OOOOH here is a good one…. I recently saw a commercial stating if your antidepressant is no longer working for you, you should consider adding one more pill to your cocktail (meaning your daily prescription drugs)! So in other words, keep taking that antidepressant but add this other pill to that pill and let’s see what happens….

Dang, your doctor knows nothing about ANY of these drugs. Think about this the next time you visit your doctor…….. When you are sitting in the waiting room, look around. You will probably see a Pharmaceutical Rep walking in or walking out of the back. He or she will have a large black suitcase (rolling case or over the shoulder bag) filled with “sample pills”. These Reps will go in and see your doctor and tell your doctor how these pills work and what they are for. They will then leave a stack of these Sample Pills for…. You. Your doctor will only know of the side effects from their patients that they give these pills to. If your doctor is interested enough, he or she may do their own research on the pills they are prescribing you if they so desire.

Why isn’t there a “Chinese American History Month”, Native American History Month, and “Latin American History Month”….etc…..etc…???? Did you know that African Americans were not the only race in the USA that fought for their freedom? There were also boatloads of Chinese Girls that were sold to Americans into slavery to become prostitutes! What about the Native Americans that were killed for their land from the Americans?
I am not saying that we should not honor the history of African Americans in February. I am questioning why just the history of Blacks in America? Why don't we have a month dedicated to other nationalities that have made America their country too?

Chinese are Americans too, but we only have one day dedicated to us (Chinese New Years). The Irish also have one day dedicated to them too (St. Patrick Day). For instance, since February is designated as Black History Month and the Chinese New Year is also in that month, couldn’t we celebrate Chinese American History at the same time?

Funds for Cancer Research - We have SO many fund raisers in the USA for cancer research … Race for the Cure, the three-day breast cancer walk, all of the charity Hollywood events raising money for research…..etc…..etc…..etc…. Did it ever occur to you that MAYBE the companies that are supporting these labs/research/foundations do not want to find a cure, because they will lose all of the support and millions of tax-free money? These events are raising so much money, you would think that “we are almost close to a cure” would have been years ago when we first heard that! Imagine if there was a cure for cancer! JUST IMAGINE…… the funds would stop. How much does the actual charity or research company get from those events?

The bigger the better? In the 1970s-1980s an average house had around 1500 sq ft... In 2004 it grew to around 2,300 sq ft. Nowadays if your home is not around or over 2400 sq ft, your house is considered “small”. Now that the economy is failing, these mini mansions are empty all over America. Loans were given to people that were not qualified for those loans. People that obtain these ARM loans or Balloon Payments are now without their homes or jobs… or both. Under 10 years ago the housing market was great for the Sellers. You could not touch a decent house for under $200,000.00 then. Now that same house is worth almost half that price today! We owe more on our home than what it is worth! Go figure!

Super Size Me - In the 1970s our bottle of coke was 10 oz……….Nowadays a normal size bottle of coke is 20 oz. Everything is super-sized. The Americans are not happy with a “normal size burger”; we must get that extra value meal with the extra fries and larger burgers. We are also fattest country and have the highest obesity rate because we demand everything to be “super-sized”!!!!

You want to hear the scary part? Our children do not know what a real, normal sized portion is! Think about it….. if you gave them a dinner with the portions that we had as children, how would they react?

Our great economy (yea right!) One more thing that I want to bring up.... We all know that our economy is failing each and every day. We are lucky if we have jobs, retirement funds, homes, or just the basic needs in life. Here is the question that will NEVER receive an answer…. THEN WHY ARE THE PRICES GOING UP ON EVERYTHING?! Okay… I know “it is because no one is buying, so we have to make up for the cost….” Blah blah blah! KEEP THE DANG PRICES down people! If you keep the prices down so that people could afford things… then maybe we will purchase more often and keep the economy moving forward! How about this… we can barely heat our homes and keep the electric on BUT the price of gas and electric has been raised more than 33% this year alone!

For my own personal experience that I have to deal with EVERY QUARTER….We have a well. We do NOT have city water, but we do pay for sewage. EVERY DANG quarter we have to pay $115.00 for SEWAGE! This is an estimate price that the Water Commissioner came up with! OH… IT USED TO BE $84.00/per quarter a few short years ago! We also own another house in Farmington Hills that has city water/sewage. I was looking back at the water bill and at our water bills from our tenants and the average for sewage is UNDER $30.00/per quarter!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT A RIP OFF!

Timestamp: 1/29/2009 9:13:00 AM

2010-02-19T14:40:00.004-05:00

I can be quiet and keep my thoughts to myself. For only a select few, I am able to share my feelings, but most of the time, I like to keep things to myself. I used to share a lot more of my life with some people, but I have learned that is not safe to do anymore. It is funny how you think , the people that claim to be close to you are the ones that harbor ill feelings toward you... When you take a step back and watch the scenario that is taking place in front of you, you must take action or let them step all over you!

ooohhh How things will be changing... I wish to share this with a person that I have been watching for some time, but will not for numerous reasons..... However, this is what I would like to say to her: I refuse to sit back and let someone try to make me feel I am not wanted , especially where I should be! I almost gave in and then realized.... HEY.... not this time!!! Yes, darling, I AM a stronger person now. Yes darling, I can be quiet and you may take it as weakness... but I assure you, it is not! YOU are not going to rush me out of my own business that I created!!!!!!!!!!! I will show up in places where you made me feel unwelcome.... You will not make me feel inadequate anymore! Let us look back... Who has the professionally background and should know a little bit of what she is doing.... oh... that would be me! I worked very hard to where I am now and I am not going to have an insecure person chase me away!

AAAhhh much better! LOL People can be so strange. If you give too much of yourself, it will show signs of weakness. I am not saying to hold it all in, just be careful of who you share things with. As for my past, I am very open about my childhood and who I am, but that is different from what I want to share from deep within my soul.

Timestamp: 2/7/2009 8:21 PM

2010-02-19T14:40:00.003-05:00

It is just one of those nights... I hardly have them, but when I do, I pray that I get out of them fast! I am so tired today. I cannot focus and my memory has been horrible lately. I feel like I am burning out fast and cannot stop this spiral effect.

The classes are going very well. I had to turn down a teaching position at Ballys. The sad thing they did was NOT inform the gym! One of our students came up to me this morning and said she saw the posters posted all around Ballys that I was going to be there today! I called them to inform them that I had called the Director on Thursday and informed her of my decision. I felt horrible that they were excited about it, but it was not feasible for me to conduct classes there! Not only was it a bad business move for me, but the pay was horrible! I only agreed to it because of being highly referred to them by another Instructor.

Speaking of that Instructor that referred me, I let her know about my decision and she told me (because she teaches for Ballys on the east side), that her free class had around 25 people and in her first paying class she only had 6 people show up! I am SO glad that I declined on the offer now!! She said she is used to 50 students at a time... OH, the sound system failed her TWICE and she had to play music that she was not prepared to play on both days!! When I went in for my interview, I was told that their sound system was a little challenging and that the CD player did not play as well as the iPod connector. It was for the best.

Back to the present.... "My mind" feels lazy today. If I said that to someone, would anyone understand what I mean? My mind - the way I think - how I react to things - etc - has been slow or unsteady lately. I try to stay focused and positive all the time, but my mind wants to go back to the black tunnel.

Lifetime Network has a movie coming out called, "America". I left a comment about my feelings toward this upcoming movie at the Lifetime Network website... This is what I said:

I have been seeing the clips of this upcoming movie with Rosie O'Donnell, America and have to admit, those feel seconds that I watch the clip, I start crying. When Rosie O'Donnell character says, "When you reach age 18, the systems is no longer there for you" (Not in those exact words, but you get what I mean).

I was turning 16 years old when that happened to my twin sister and I. We were in the court system because of child abuse... at our last visit to the courts (age 15 1/2), the court said that "we were too old for foster care, so we will put the girls on an Independent Living Program". Basically, we were kicked into the streets of Detroit.

If my schedule permits it, I plan to watch this movie. I came from the system and never looked back - I still deal with the nightmares, but I use the energy and continue to make something positive out of what I was given.

I am a grown woman, successful (I like to think so), Two grown children and a wonderful husband. If I had to go back to where I came from, to get to this point in my life.... I would.

Bravo to the people who made this movie possible... maybe it will shine a light on how the courts really treat these children!

In my eyes, it is kind of funny... I cannot believe my childhood can still impact my life today! To have memories pop in at no given time... to feel a certain way when you thought those feelings were gone.... to feel the pain of the past as though it were yesterday.........

This picture was taken last year - 2008. I was standing in front of the "Laundry Room" of one of the children's homes we lived in and Donna standing in front of the building that she lived in. Donna and I decided to take some pictures there because a private business bought the land and will be removing all of the "cottages" and replacing them with a sub division. This was the Sarah Fisher Home in Farmington Hills, Michigan. Another part of our past that will no longer exist....

Timestamp: 1/29/2009 5:39:27 AM

2010-02-19T14:38:00.001-05:00

I was tagged by my niece to fill out "25 things I WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT YOU" at Facebook, so I thought I should put it in my blog to check on it later

I am beginning to dislike eating food, due to fear of the contaminated food out there.

I have severe insomnia... like now! (4:30am)

I am still very much in love with my husband.. as though it is the first day we met...20 years later

I don't want to grow old with my sisters living so far from me.

I want my family and friends to succeed and be happy in their lives.

Although it took me so long to graduated from college, I have no desire to further my education.

I am a better person since 2006 and especially since 2008!

I love teaching fitness.

I love seeing the smiles on my students faces when I teach! I love hearing about their success!

I wish I could change my son's life and make him happier.

I love my little dogs! I truly don't see them as dogs but as my little children.

I love watching Nino... the intense look when he plays his guitar, how he is a walking dictionary, and on top of that... he is the most gorgeous man I have ever met!

I love how Nino looks better than most men half his age! I love how he is aging so very well!!

Sometimes I feel the urge to jump out of a moving vehicle,

I am afraid to die but want to die before everyone else.

I want to start painting again... I need my creativity juices to run in my veins again!

I wish I had more patience.

I hate getting old.

I wish I could see my grandson and have the time to get to know him.

I wish I had more time. I know sleep is important, but I feel like time is wasted with sleep.

I want our children to be happy and do very well in life... no matter what it is. It doesn't have to be monetary, but enough to live comfortable with or without a partner.

I am not sure if it is because I am getting older, but I see life so differently right now - It is hard to describe.

If I could be where I am at... this very moment in my life, I would relive my childhood to get here again.

I wish I could take a few days per week and learn to do "nothing".

I am happy that I do not have a 9to5 job and it is possible because of Nino.

Timestamp: 1/4/2010 1:14:00 PM

2010-02-18T13:37:00.000-05:00

Timestamp: 1/4/2010 1:14:00 PM

2010-02-18T13:35:00.002-05:00

Did you know that every decade, we tend to gain at least 5 pounds with normal activity! Even if you have exercised most of your life, your average weight gain is at least 3 pounds. Why is this? Because most of us do not increase our activities and most likely we are eating more.

Keep in mind, that the federal guidelines for physical activity are the same, calling for equal amounts of exercise for both younger and older adults. Both the Surgeon General and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend 30 minutes of moderate physical activity for everybody on most days of the week.

Remember, getting older does not mean you have to look and feel your age too. With the right food and exercise plan you can turn back the clock of time and enjoy abundant energy and experience the joy of feeling better than you have in years. By including exercise into your life, you will notice the change in your attitude, habits, and even your appearance.

I would like to add another important factor that we all should add to our lives .... LAUGHTER! We hardly hear of laughter being part of our daily routine, but it SHOULD BE! When was the last time you had a good laugh? I mean... the deep, crazy, loud laughter! Laughter keeps us young at heart. Laughter takes away those stern, deep expressions that a lot of us have on our faces.... it softens our faces and add a hint of color! It is great for our soul too... Oh... one more thing.... it tones your abdominal muscles too!

Summary:

So you are over forty... Some of us are at the time in our lives where we see how we took care of ourselves will now show. It is like an automobile... In order to have your automobile run smooth, you have to keep it oiled, engine clean, and take care of it. If you don't, it will eventually give out on you or stop working. You are never too old to add some type of activity to your life to keep your body moving and your heart healthy. I know that some of our health problems may not be our fault, because of genetics or what our higher spirit has planned for us, but we are able to maintain what we have to keep it running smoothly...inside and out.

If you eat too much junk, change your eating habits. Diets do not work - just eat smaller portions and make sure your meals are colorful (more on that in the next newsletter) Don't take yourself too serious. You were given this life and you made it the way it is today. Deal with it or change it, but stop the excuses! Keep laughter in your life... Rent a funny movie or rent a classic that you used to love as a child... The Carol Burnett TV shows were my favorites and they always made me laugh!

Timestamp: 11/6/2009 5:51:00 AM

2010-02-18T13:30:00.001-05:00

I decided to stay up this time. Why lie in bed and force myself to (try to) sleep, when all it does is frustrating me.

When you really think about aging, isn’t it really sad for most people. I can already tell that I am not going to “age gracefully”. Youth is wasted on the young. When we are young, we cannot wait until we are older. Oh how we wish we were young “once again” when we are older. I guess it boils down that we are never happen with ourselves. Those of us that want straight hair have curly hair…. Short hair people want long hair… Short people want to become taller… Taller people want to become shorter…

age 17 or 18

Just when you realize your life is going good or if you came to term with certain issues in your life, that is when something would hit the fan. Life is a wild rollercoaster. Once you think something is going well, something else will always pop up.

It is not about negativity. It is about life. You reach the end of one chapter in your life to begin a new one.

For most, you never give up. You keep “keeping on” and hope for the best. You strive to succeed and you work hard trying to get there. Some of us are professional students, we continue to learn new things and gain more knowledge. Some of us work long hours and never make the time to see what is around us, before it is too late. Yet, there are some of us who feel the world owes them. Those people decide to do nothing in their lives except complain or take from others.

Who are you?

Who am I?

I am the workaholic and the one that continues to learn. I am not a professional student, because I felt I put enough time into college, but I do love workshops and learning new things all the time. That is of course, if I find the time to attend. I put aside the things that I love to do, because “I am too busy”. Oh how I wish I could make the time to sit at a blank canvas and paint. I wish I could sit still during the day and well, just sit and do nothing.

I wish when the phone rings and the call is for me, that I could truly enjoy the conversation instead of multitasking while trying to talk. From the second I wake up to the second I lie my head on the pillow, I am working. Perhaps owning many computers and assigning each one to different tasks keeps me too busy.

I have a great interest in holistic living, aromatherapy, martial arts, and the arts. I want to gain so much knowledge so that I could carry an intelligent conversation with those that do know the topics of my interest, but the minute I learn something, it vanishes quickly from my mind.

Right back to the top of this topic…

AGE.

I still feel young inside. When I teach, I love to smile and laugh and I love seeing the smiles and laughter from my students. I feel I kept myself up by eating right, a lot of exercise, and a lot of laughter. I try to stay focus and positive. I have taken negativity out of my life and do not associate with negative people. I stand proud of who I am and who I have become. I am more assuring of myself nowadays. However, I know that I work too hard, but that comes from never wanting to live on the streets again. I do not want to fail at anything, so that contributes to my hard work. I feel by appearance, I look at least ten years (or maybe more) than what I actually am. My fitness level seems to be much better now then it was in my twenties. I love the fact that I never touched alcohol or drugs in my youth and when I see myself to people, I have known in the past, I feel it helped keep my youthful looks…. At least for now…

Reality hits within.

I wake up every morning and I can hardly walk. I look at my body and see it changing right in front of my eyes. I look at my skin and see dryness no matter how much lotion I put on or how much water I drink. I see the gray hairs peeking out from my roots and hate the though of wasting hours at the hair stylist to cover them, (I wait until the last minute to take care of those dang roots!). I look in the mirror and see more lines, more freckles, and now age spots. I also see deep circles around my eyes from no sleep. I see my face starting to sag.

I walk up the stairs from my basement and can hardly breathe! I literally feel pain in my legs and chest just from walking up eight stairs!

Although my health is good, I feel something deep within that does not feel right. I wish I were wrong and I wish I did not know my body so well. Wherever the road of health takes me, I must embrace today. Today, I feel healthy.

My children are adults now. One is hitting 30 and the other just hit 20. If my son is considered “middle-aged”, then what am I?

I see life so differently now. I see our parents getting older or death around us and knowing that we are the next ones in line. I look into Nino’s eyes and see that he feels the same, exact way that I do. I see that we both wish we had more time. When we look into each other’s eyes, I feel our sadness of how much time was wasted on little things… I do know that one day, one of us will be alone from each other and that saddens me. I just hope it is me first to leave this earth and not him. I still see the most gorgeous man in the world. From the first day I met him to now, he will always be the most talented, handsome, smartest man in the world to me. We made it through tough times and hard times. We had our share of fighting, in our youth. See, time was wasted in our youth but I would not change anything in my life with him.

I am lucky to where my life is today. Again, if I had to go back to my abusive childhood… to where no one ever wanted me or loved me… to the streets of the unknown, I would not change one thing if I could make it back to right where I am at today.

See, reality is hitting within. Yes, it will be a struggle to one day see myself as old. Yes, I wish I could be a little younger again. In addition, yes, I wish we could stop time and stay exactly where we are at now, but we cannot. Life is one big rollercoaster. When one leaves it, another enters the long journey of ups and downs. Let us just hope those that are on their journey makes the best out of their lives.

Vegas, 2009

Timestamp: 7/31/2009 9:21:00 AM

2010-02-18T13:27:00.001-05:00

I cannot believe how some people are! Yesterday, two of us from Fitness Motivators did a two Zumba Presentations for the Tam-O-Shanter Country Club in West Bloomfield. Let me mention that we did these presentations for free.

The morning presentation was fun. Those Ladies were friendly and appeared to have a great time. There was even one participant that was also a "Zumba Instructor". She wanted to see "our teaching skills and how we taught Zumba".

Let me elaborate on this "Instructor". As soon as the music started, she decided to take over the entire presentation by jumping around, moving the opposite way then we were teaching, standing in the front row to demonstrate moves that I was NOT even doing! She was SO distracting and bouncing around as if she was on a caffeine fix! I could clearly see on the other Ladies faces were getting stressed because of this "show-off Zumba Instructor". She was literally bumping into the other participants or getting in the way for them to view me that I decided to change the class direction by moving around to the other side of the room when the song ended.

This Instructor was SO disrespectful that this was the FIRST time in my entire 30-year fitness career that I saw ANYTHING like this! IF she is reading this...... (which I am sure she is not, because my Online Journal is not easily accessible unless one shows this to her), I want to say this to her: IF you are going to participate in ANY fitness class, no matter WHO the Instructor is, refrain from showing off and disrespecting the Instructor! YOU DO NOT go in the front row, ESPECIALLY if you think you know the routine or song! Let the other Participants have fun and interact with the Instructor and feel the experience of the class. I saw everyone behind you trying to look over your shoulder or they had stress on their faces because they could not see me, because you kept moving the opposite way from them or when you were doing your own routine in MY class, they were avoiding your arms or legs from bumping into them!

Also, NEVER change the move of the Instructor! YOU DO NOT go into another class and decide that you will change the move (AND I MEAN YOU CHANGED EVERY, SINGLE MOVE). Don't you know how confusing that would be to the participant?!!!!! Personally, I try to make the participants first class experience a positive one, especially if that is their first time in my class or a certain type of class! You came into the room with a lack of professionalism, disrespect, and such a show-off display that you even made some of the participants upset! Unfortunately, you did not succeed at what you wanted to do. Your reputation has been tarnished among your country club co-members, because of your display of inappropriate behavior.

It is very clear that you became a Zumba Instructor with no fitness or instructional background and you are very new to the fitness industry. (Although you did tell me that you taught, "dance to elementary children", you may want to step back and make sure you are not teaching them inappropriate behavior as well.) Please refrain from attending other fitness classes until you know the etiquettes of participating in another Instructors class.

"When you are participating in the class of another instructor, however, it is important that you not draw attention to yourself. Enjoy the class, make an occasional positive shout out, and assist the instructor or a new participant if you are asked to do so. Carrying on so that you draw attention to yourself and away from the principle, however, is rude. It is a little like wearing white to your sister's wedding. Just say no. There is a very fine line here between support and spotlight stealing. Err on the side of caution and ask the instructor if he/she minds you participating. Then, ask if she/he has a preference for where you place yourself. When approached in this way, most instructors are happy for the help and may ask that you greet late attendees or help a new person. Making every effort to be supportive and helpful will go a long way toward building peer relationships and a team atmosphere." PLEASE, I BEG you to read the rest of this article at this link! http://scwfitness.com/index.php?story=1523

On another incident that happened at this club............ while waiting for the second part of our afternoon class to begin, a lady came in and we started having a conversation with her. When she said she has been taking a Zumba class for almost a year, I asked, "ohhh how wonderful! Who is your Instructor?". She said, "Lilliana - before she moved to Paris and Karen". I said, "Ohhh I know Lilliana, she is a friend of mine... she is a beautiful person that teaches the authentic Latin way.... I just love her... Isn't Karen the older Instructor that used to teach with Lilliana? That lady replied, "FU*K YOU Bi***... I am 53 years old". I was shocked that a complete stranger said that to me!!!!!!!!!!! I replied... "I am ** years old and only said older because anyone older than me, is...well, older". (FYI: I am in their age range too)

When we started the class, that lady demanded that we face our backs toward her. I told her that "we do not teach like that". She demanded it again. I said, "I am sorry, but we do not teach with our backs toward anyone." She did very well until the song "Single Lady". She stomped out of the class!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! After that Instructor and lady left, the remaining time was perfect! I plan to send an email to the Country Club to never contact me again. OHHH I also found out that MOST OF THE PRESENTERS received payment for their time!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NEVER AGAIN!

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHH WAIT THERE IS ONE MORE THING!! We were invited to have lunch with them (this was planned while they were setting us up to do this event with them - maybe one month or so before). The setting was beautiful and very elegant! The Host was very sweet. All I wanted was a cup of coffee, but Anne-Marie was hungry, so we decided to stay for their "famous" lunch. GUESS WHAT THEY DID!!????? The Host took us through the kitchen and took us to a dark dining room with NO ONE in there and told us to eat in there!!!! "Go get some food (where everyone was at) and come back here to eat" OMGGGGGG After she left, I stood there in shock and said to Anne-Marie, "WE are NOT going to eat here and be treated like Servants! I CANNOT believe she put us in a dark dining room as though we were not worthy to eat with the others!!!!!!!!!!!!" We did not eat there. After drinking some of our coffee, we walked out of there and decided to take some pictures on their campus!!!!!!!!!!!! BTW... we were told after the luncheon (from one of their members) that all the other vendors and Presenters were invited to join them in their dining room!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Timestamp: 7/17/2009 5:36:00 AM

2010-02-18T13:26:00.001-05:00

I HAD to post this!! I do not swear, but I had to post it with the swearing, because it would not or could not sound any better without it! LOL I swear, what I posted below is OHHHH SO TRUE! LOL

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking Twenty-five miles to school every morning.... Uphill... barefoot...

BOTH ways
Yadda, yadda, yadda

And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way in hell I was going to lay a bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it! But now that... I am over the ripe old age of thirty, I cannot help but look around and notice the youth of today.

You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in a damn Utopia! And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it!
I mean, when I was a kid we did not have The Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the damn library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalogue!!
There was no email!! We had to actually write somebody a letter - with a pen! Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox and it would take, like, a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!

Child Protective Services did not care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass! Nowhere was safe!

There were no MP3' s or Napsters! If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the damn record store and shoplift it yourself!

Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished and the tape would come undone. Cause - that's how we rolled, dig?

We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you were on the phone and somebody else called they got a busy signal, that's it!

And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either!
When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your mom, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, a collections agent, you just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!

We didn't have any fancy Sony Playstation video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games like 'Space Invaders' and 'Asteroids'. Your guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen... forever!
And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!

You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your ass and walk over to the TV to change the channel! NO REMOTES!!!

There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying!?! We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you spoiled little rat-bastards!

And we didn't have micro waves, if we wanted to heat something up we had to use the stove! Imagine that!

That is exactly what I'm talking about! You kids today have it too easy. You are spoiled. You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in 1980 or before!

Regards,
The Over 30 Crowd

Timestamp: 6/28/2009 7:16:00 PM

2010-02-18T13:23:00.001-05:00

Like the world, I too am very upset and shocked with the death of Michael Jackson. He impacted my life through his music. His family is from my generation and like I posted the minute I heard of his death at my Facebook status…. Michael Jackson was the soundtrack of my life. My favorites musicians…. Luther Vandroff, Barry White, Marvin Gaye and now Michael Jackson are gone… such beautiful talent…gone. Thank God we still have Stevie Wonder and Lionel Richie......

I am sitting here watching CNN covering "the stars walking on the Red Carpet for the BET awards night”. This is WHAT I WOULD LIKE to know… Before Michael Jackson (MJ) passing, was MJ invited to the BET Music Awards???????????????????? Was MJ even on the list as a guest? Was his music planned to be at the BET Awards? I THINK NOT!

A tribute to MJ is very nice and I hope they concentrate on MJ videos and music, but I am quite sure that we will see a lot of the “stars” singing MJ songs or do the moon-walk…. But I am wondering…. IF MJ did not pass away, would they still welcome him? Huuummmmmmmmmmm…. Good question indeed……….

I know we ALL have our memory of MJ songs and in one way or another , his songs reflected something in most of our lives. Most of his songs were favorites of mine….The song “Ben” always made me think of the mice that I grew up with! (Too long to talk about right now). When Donna and I danced professionally, the first few songs that we did in “live music videos” was Thriller and Beat It (and Bond 007 theme song! hehe)

I am curious to see how this BET show will turn out…I hope it will be truly a dedication to MJ instead of the stars and media feeding off of his death. So many "dedications" from these "stars" are all of a sudden appearing............ hummmmmmmmmmmmmm.... One favor pleaseeeeeeeeeeee.... Do not make this into a "race" thing!!!!!!!! Remember... Michael Jackson was not about race! He loved all races! PLEASEEEE..... I hope they do not make the tribute and MJ death a "race thing".... Remember his song... "Black or White".. It doesn't matter if you are black or white.......

It is truly amazing how MJ touched everyone in the world. In my mom’s generation, it was Elvis…. In my generation… Michael Jackson…. Who will it be for my children’s generation?

You will be missed Michael Jackson. Your songs will be appreciated with the angels above. Find peace Michael.

Timestamp: 6/16/2009 11:14:00 PM

2010-02-18T13:20:00.001-05:00

Wow! It has been a while since I have written in my blog! Dang. what a stressful night on the dang phone! Nino “accidentally” damaged his laptop and THANK GOD I purchased an extra Accidental Damage Insurance for it! The Insurance will expire on July 6!

Any hoo…. I called HP and was directed to five OR MORE different people… ALL OUT SOURCED by that dang way………… they had NO clue to what the heck I was talking about! It got to the point where I kept asking to speak to the Management, and the stupid guy just SAT ON THE PHONE! I was on the phone for OVER ONE hour and 29 minutes!

While I was on the phone, Nino decided to call the SAME DANG number and he got through with no problem! They also had “my case number and my Insurance Number” (my guy said he could not find it and he “checked ten times”) I hung up from my guy and Nino then WAS ON THE DANG PHONE FOR OVER ONE HOUR! HIS guy “hung up on him” but did call him back 20 minutes later!

ONE THING I MUST SAY TO THE CORPORATE WORLD………. STOP outsourcing our JOBS! Not only is HP using India for the UNITED STATES Customer Service...... When you purchase a brand new computer from them… the entire computer was built IN CHINA and shipped from CHINA!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don’t get me wrong, I AM CHINESE BUT I was born and raised in the USA! This is MY home!

That is why people are losing their homes and jobs! The corporate world does NOT care about you! They only see what the bottom line is for THEM! Like I said before…. I will challenge ANYONE who complains about “Made in the USA only products”….. THEY think that putting a dang bumper sticker on their vehicle will SAVE THEIR JOBS!!!!!!!!!!!!! WAKE UP PEOPLE! I can bet YOU that ANYTHING I find in YOUR home and vehicle will NOT be 100% USA MADE! Anything that I find, I KEEP! DEAL? Tell that to your boss the next time you go to work - IF you still have a job! Tell your boss to keep the jobs in the USA. Better yet…. IN MICHIGAN!

People are stupid. Period. Just like the sub that we live in…….. Check this out: People are losing their homes all over the place. I drove down ONE street in our sub and saw at least 3 homes that was bank owned! The value of our homes went down and our taxes are going up! I believe we owe MORE on our home then what it is worth! One of the homes that is empty (yes, in the picture below. That is the house I am talking about), I checked it out……….. The house was once worth over $425,000.00. Last year it supposedly sold for over a little $380,000.00. GUESS WHAT the taxes are????????????? OVER $14,000.00/year!!!! Yes, no typos…. $14,000.00+ So…… IF that house sells, the stupid person that buys that house will have “the privilege” to live in this neighborhood and city for over $1000.00 per MONTH! That is NOT including the mortgage or Insurance! I say this… DO YOUR HOMEWORK people!

Getting back to my point about this sub… People are losing everything in Michigan. Our sub committee wanted new roads in the sub! They won the vote and now all of us in this sub has to pay an additional $5500.00 on our taxes!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They feel “the price of our homes value will go up because of the new roads”! STUPID!!!!! What value? The value from what it is NOW? LOL We wrote a letter to the City Engineer and said if only one family loses their home because they could not afford their home… we blame it all on them! I say we do nothing major with anything until the economy picks up. Improving the roads in a sub division should not be a priority!

Timestamp: 4/10/2009 11:10:09 PM

2010-02-18T13:17:00.001-05:00

It has been one week since I was in Missouri. I miss my twin so much! I wish we lived in the same state. Nino and I looked at a few clinics in Illinois to see if Illinois would be a state for us to move to, plus it is closer to Donna! I instantly had a bad feeling about the doctor that was selling his clinic. He was too nervous and I caught him being dishonest with us. We drove through the small town and thought that it would not suit us.

The bottom –line, we live in a very nice area in Michigan. We both were born in Michigan and know all of the cities, areas, where not to go, where to go, and everything in between. It is a shame that Michigan is doing so horrible in this economy! I do believe that the Big Three will pick up and will pull through, but it has to get to the deep bottom before it can get back up…. Like all things.

Although I do not believe in our law enforcement in this city, I do love our city. The community (people) has been very good to me. Nino is a well-respected doctor and has an outstanding reputation in the city where he practices in. My clients love our fitness program and finally I feel like our program is getting the popularity it should. So, why do we want to move from this? We have worked so hard to get to this point in our lives. Why do we insist on throwing this all away to start all over again? I cannot answer those questions…. I just want our family to live closer together again. Nothing is worth it without my twin sister by my side in good and bad times.

I miss my little sister too. I feel she is doing too much and is making her life too stressful for no reason. Yes she will have her PHD next year, but I feel it will only add more stress to her already complicated life. She works too hard and doesn’t take enough time to enjoy the benefits.

Actually, we all work very hard! I never see my brother and he lives 20 minutes away! I miss him too! Speaking of working too hard! He does too! However, the only difference with my Tony and Tina, Tina tries to exercise and stay active. Tony doesn’t exercise and it very unhealthy. I am so afraid that Tony will soon have major health problems (if not already), if he doesn’t slow down now!

I miss the days when we all got together a few times per month and just hung out with each other. I miss it so much! Life gets busy for all of us that one day we will regret it. We will regret letting our lives get so busy that we will remember what is important to us too late.

It seems as though I am working overtime for Fitness Motivators. I am trying hard to get our new Z-Box program out there to the public. We plan to focus on Z-Box in our training over the summer with our team. I just made some real cool postcards to put around the community. We have a photo shoot planned for next month and that will be when I need to have our Z-Box Logo ready so that I could get some promo info out there!

I love what I am doing lately! I love keeping busy and teaching all of these classes! I have never felt any better than I do now! I thank God everyday for giving me this life.

There is one concern that I do have… I want to help David so badly that I have no idea what the first step is to help my son!!?? I need to help him focus on his life and make him listen to me…. Another time and place for that subject… I just love him so much that I need him to be oaky in his life.