Can I get Another Hit Of Internet?

Last weekend our cable modem died, and we had no broadband connection for three days. As a modern day wired family, no Internet created quite a disturbance. My son was unable to play online games on Noggin.com or NickJr.com, my husband was unable to search for parts to construct his dream car, and I was forced to use Edge on my iPhone to do all my everyday tasks like check my email, balance the checkbook, and Twitter. My husband and I were actually anticipating going to work on Monday just so we could get our fix of high speed Internet.

Once I exchanged the defective cable modem and we were back online at home, my husband proceeds to tell me that he thinks we are addicted to the Internet. I laughed at the very notion, but he was serious and pointed out how hard the past three days had been on us. Yes, it was torture, but I assured him we did not have a problem. I confessed, sure we abuse the Net but that does not mean we are in fact hooked.

Fascinated by the topic, I did as any Internet junkie would do and did some online research. The first Google search result pointed me to an Internet Addiction Test. I took the test and was happy to find I was indeed not out of control. According to my test results:

You are an average on-line user. You may surf the Web a bit too long at times, but you have control over your usage.

w00t! :-p

I assume it is possible to be addicted to anything including the Internet. However, I'm sticking to my story and my test results to prove I do not have an unnatural obsession with cyberspace.

I'm curious if you feel there is a such thing as Internet addiction. Do you think you are addicted or know someone who may be addicted to the Internet? Please share your thoughts.

UPDATE: Poll Results 2/19/09 - 2/26/09

How long do you think you could go without Internet?
60% Hours
20% Days
20% Weeks
00% Meh

Can A Recession Make You Fat?

I've seen reports that predict the economic recession will cause a rise in obesity. The thought is, people will buy cheaper, less healthy food to save money. More people will turn to fast food to feed their families. Basically, it's a consensus that it costs more to eat heathy. I'm curious if this is true.

Recently, my family eats out less and cooks at home more. We hardly ever go out to sit-down restaurants these days, and we eat fast food maybe twice a month at most. At the grocery store, I save money by making more stuff from scratch. Pre-packaged meals can't compete with a home-made meal. We have a deep freeze and I buy meat when it's on sell and freeze it. A lot of produce, like onions and bell peppers, can be chopped and frozen too so it's easily accessible to quickly cook up a nice meal. I even started making pizza at home which is a lot cheaper than delivery pizzerias, not to mention healthier and a lot of fun to make. And yes, some days I feel lazy and we just make spaghetti.

Buying breakfast and lunches during the work week can account for a huge chunk of the budget. We managed to cut those expenses too without cutting back on taste. Either my husband or I have managed to cook breakfast almost every day. Before work, I make breakfast sandwiches on whole wheat bread with egg and turkey with a side of fruit. My husband and I also make lunches to take to work usually consisting of leftovers from the night before or a sandwich or salad.

I feel my family has been eating better since we started being more conscience of our spending habits. It may be a little more work, but I think it's worth it. I don't feel that the recession will cause any weight gain in this household.

I'm curious, how has the economic downturn changed your eating habits? Are you eating less or eating lower quality foods? Or has it caused you to rethink how to feed yourself and your family? Please share you thoughts.

UPDATE: Poll Results 7/13/09 - 2/20/09

Do you think the recession will cause a rise in obesity?
25% Yes
25% No
50% Meh

Camera Shy?

Sorry about the delay in writing a new blog post! It's been a crazy couple of weeks as the latest flu bug has passed through our house. Everyone is feeling better now and it's back to business as usual :-)

Last Sunday was my husband's birthday as well as The Big Game, so naturally, we threw a party. It was blast! I love hosting and enjoy good food, good drinks, and good friends.

I was hoping to take a few photos to capture the day and share on Facebook. However, my friends did not seem to be as enthusiastic about having their photos taken as I would have thought. Most of my photos were of the back of people's heads because no one was interested in smiling for the camera. In fact, one friend grabbed my iPhone to look at every photo with him in it and proceeded to delete the ones he didn't like. At the end of the day, I was a little sad as I looked over all the photos I had taken. I was hoping for a few more exciting photos. Maybe a couple of goofy shots and some showing people having a good time.

I'm curious, in this day when almost everyone has a camera on them from a cell phone camera to a digital SLR, how do people really few about candid photos taken of them?

UPDATE: Poll Results 2/4/09 - 2/11/09

How do you feel about having your picture taken?
00% Love it
33% Don't mind
66% Sometimes
00% Please don't