Obesity in America: Startling Facts

05 Friday Aug 2016

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Yesterday I announced a new book project in a nearly backhanded way. Being big is a big problem in America. I wasn’t making fun though I would like to cash in. That’s honesty. Here’s more honesty: we have a massive epidemic on our hands (and guts, thighs, etc.). A few of the facts:

overweight-rates-in-america

dukandiet.com

35% of Americans are obese. That’s 111 million people. http://stateofobesity.org/rates/.

Almost 70% of Americans are obese or overweight. 223 million. That’s a vast majority being vast. Id.

Rates of physical inactivity range from 16% in Colorado to 31% in Mississippi. Id.

Obesity is costing around $200 Billion! per year in medical care. Virtually all of this is preventable Id.

Obesity-related illnesses kill 300,000 people each year (the number could be closer to 500,000). WV Dept. Health and Human Resources.

One in five American deaths is related to obesity. Dr. Joseph Mercola.

Sugar, tasty as it is, is poison. Id.

Being overweight can lead to: heart disease; high blood pressure; stroke, diabetes, high blood fat; failing metabolism; cancer; osteoarthritis; sleep apnea; hypertension; gallstones – among many other problems. Nat’l. Inst. of Health.

While being “overweight” could be explained by an excess of water, bone, or muscle (or by being fat), being “obese” just means being overly fat. NIH.

As the majority of Americans are now overweight, being normal is now abnormal. This isn’t good.

Americans eat 20% more than they did in 1983. publichealth.org.

Americans spend over $20 Billion a year on diet schemes – they’re not working. Id.

Obesity has doubled in the past four decades and it’s getting worse. ADA. 70% and worsening. What’s next? 90%? 99%?

In a way these facts are indicative of the prosperity of America. We produce more food than ever. Food is easier to come by than ever. Activities are less demanding than ever. Government evil and cultural idiocy aside, life is better than ever. Even our poorest people (especially the poor) are overweight these days. That’s a historical anomaly among the human population. It’s proof of too much of a good thing, maybe.

I was among the ranks of the new normal for a long time. Too long. Too many wasted years. Getting into shape and staying there isn’t easy. It isn’t difficult either. We can reverse these trends.

***

Note: It came to my attention that more unsolicited political ads are running on my posts from time to time. At some point I will be halting this altogether (WP control ain’t cheap). Until then I’ve decided to counter those ads with some ads of my own. Here’s one:

imwithfawkes

Crisis is Opportunity: The Fattening

04 Thursday Aug 2016

Posted by perrinlovett in Books For Sale, News and Notes, Other Columns

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America, books, fat, fitness, obesity

So say the Chinese. I agree. That’s why I am happy to report that Americans are fatter than ever – and getting fatter year by year. Since the late 1980s the average American has gained 15 pounds – and not muscle.

There’s no doubt about it: Americans are getting heavier and heavier. But new U.S. estimates may still come as a shock — since the late 1980s and early 1990s, the average American has put on 15 or more additional pounds without getting any taller.

Even 11-year-old kids aren’t immune from this weight plague, the study found. Girls are more than seven pounds heavier even though their height is the same. Boys gained an inch in height, but also packed on an additional 13.5 pounds compared to two decades ago.

…

“We are not doing nearly enough to control and reverse the obesity epidemic and doing far too much to propagate it. This is another notice of that sad fact,” said Dr. David Katz. He directs the Yale University Prevention Research Center and is president of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.

The new statistics were released Aug. 3 in a report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics. The statistics for 2011-2014 are based on an analysis of a sample of 19,151 people who underwent medical examinations and were interviewed at home.

These are averages too. The ordinary people. More than two-thirds of all Americans are overweight and over one-third are obese (severely overweight and at risk of serious problems or death). Of the obese many are grossly obese. These are the behemoths one sees waddling around almost everywhere. They’re getting bigger too. 300 and 400-pounders are now very common and there is a growing class of hyper-heavyweights who flirt with four digit weights (some of them have TV shows).

Global_obesity_Fat_Americans_30_percent_of_world_s_human_biomass-1200x908

America: big-time pig-time. Nutritionreview.org.

How, one might wonder, is this good news, an opportunity? One, there is tremendous potential for a huge number of (huge) people to change their lives for the better. There’s a chance for happier and longer living. People literally have the ability to save their lives. For me, this means financial publication potential.

Several years ago I started a book about how I got back into shape. I posted several articles about my journey. Then I let it drop. I noticed there was already a plethora of books on losing weight and living healthy. I figured mine would be white noise. Now I’m not so sure. All those diet books, some of them really good, don’t seem to be working. More diet books than ever and yet people keep getting fatter.

I also noticed that weight-loss is one of the most popular and lucrative book categories out there. It’s right up there with romance novels, get rick quick schemes, and adult coloring books.

Part of my forth-coming anti-terrorism book calls for people to get in shape; it’s hard to fight or flee while obese. Since I have so much of it already typed out and as if I don’t already have enough going on, I’m going to finish Perrin’s Guide to Fitness (title subject to change).

Look for it a little later in this year in Kindle, paperback and maybe even audio format. Enjoy your cheeseburgers and shakes while you can.

PS: my way is easy, fun, and self-rewarding!

Literary Pirates of the Internet

25 Monday Jul 2016

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books, internet, Perrin Lovett, Perrin on Politics, piracy, The Happy Little Cigar Book, theft

This is not a story about a new ride at Disneyland – wouldn’t that one be boring. No, this is about me and my beloved books – I hope that’s not boring.

I’m working as steady as I can on two new volumes which should be released in tandem (or close to it) and released soon. One is another cigar book, a work of pure humor. The other is dead serious, a guide to fighting terrorism on the personal, day-to-day basis. Soon, folks, soon. Ready those debit cards now.

While I was taking a break I did a periodic check on The Happy Little Cigar Book. While it is not a bestseller, it has been more successful than I had originally hoped. Thank you all! I also discovered that it is available at Barnes and Noble. I had forgotten that CreateSpace has a B&N connection. Or, maybe I made that up in my head. Anyway, I’m now at the first and second largest bookstores in the world.

nimbus-image-1469392393063

I need 5-star reviews here to match Amazon. B&N.com.

The HLCB is also (allegedly) available from some not so reputable sites as I discovered on Friday. My Googling led me to several sites claiming to offer free downloads of my book. Free downloads of MY book! That is piracy. It’s theft of my copyright protected material. Two of these are linked to Google somehow – probably via an aggregation service anyone can use. The others I looked at, like the one below, are probably just scams. I read up on this phenomenon. “Download” means get a free virus. I do not advise looking into this. That, and they likely operate outside of U.S. jurisdiction or through a laborynth of servers.

I DID NOT and DO NOT authorize this theft of my property! I’m also not attributing this clipped picture (fair play).

This is a plain, simple DMCA violation. I have a warning right there inside my books, digital and paperback. I have an action under 17 U.S.C. §§ 101, 512, et seq., provided I could pinpoint exactly who the pirates are. It’s odd for me to ponder having to use one of the many laws I can’t stand. I’ll probably let it go; blades are more my style anyway.

Part of me is angry but mostly I am flattered. At least I have enough notoriety to get into the scam sites. I was also a little mad that I did not find any pirated copies of Perrin On Politics – then again, that one is free to begin with.

I may take action but I probably will not. I could send a DMCA warning and notice (a cease a desist letter) along with a civil pre-litigation notice. I doubt much would come of it.

However, one site says the HLCB has a 4.5 star rating out of about 6,000 views. If that means they gave away 6,000 copies, then I am owed a tidy little sum. Those numbers are likely fluff and lies put up by some Chinese hacker, trying to get your bank information or something. Enough said.

For now I’ll just be flattered and a slight bit amused. You, all of you, please avoid the pirates out there. Fake or not, these postings are illegal reproductions – stolen goods. Get the real thing at Amazon or B&N. And, look out for my new material coming very soon (to real sites and stores and with real pricing).

Perrin

Bookends, July 2016

10 Sunday Jul 2016

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Amazon, Barnes and Noble, books, publishing, The Happy Little Cigar Book

The news keeps getting better month by month for authors and readers alike. The old, traditional, monopolistic publishing industry is fading rapidly. Good riddance. With it goes the middlemen, the obscene contracts, the thefts of rights, the low royalties, the limitations of access and of selection, and the tyranny of the gatekeepers.

Barnes and Noble, the last of the big chain booksellers, has announced it will allow some self-published books in its 640 or so stores nationwide. Some, not all. First, a book has to be formatted for Nook, which is B&N’s house version of Kindle. They’re keeping it in the family. Then, there are sales number requirements (1,000 for e-books, 500 for physical copies). Finally, a review board must approve the book for shelving.

Book Business/Mike Valasnick – Flickr.

This is a systemization of their current, difficult and arbitrary policy. An idie author can already get into B&N but the process and the resulting rewards (if any) are so uncertain it’s almost not worth it. B&N is desperately and belatedly trying to compete with Amazon, which allows any and all authors access to their digital store.

Book Business makes a bigger deal out of this story than it needs to. They compare B&N’s 640 stores (and shrinking?) to Amazon as if Amazon was a nebulous startup concept.

Amazon is the world’s largest bookstore. Period. No, they don’t just have one single store in Seattle. They have as many stores as there are computers, tablets, and smartphones in the world. What is that number? A billion stores? Five billion? It’s huge. I have two of those stores in my immediate possession right now.

Sometimes I get asked if The Happy Little Cigar Book is in bookstores. I always say “yes” and refer the inquirer to Amazon. By the way, just click the link two sentences back, and you’re in the store, ready to buy a copy.

When was the last time you went into a bookstore? Odds are it was a B&N as they’re about the only game left in town – and only in decent sized towns. There are, here and there, small private stores but their selection is extremely limited. An indie house might have 5,000 – 10,000 books that the owner felt like carrying. A big B&N might have 10,000 – 30,000. I’ve noticed B&N sells fewer and fewer real books in their stores and more picture books, calendars, coffee mugs, and other stuff. They’ll have popular bestselling novels but perhaps not a work of classical history or philosophy.

Amazon has millions and millions (scores of millions) of books. The e-books one can buy and start reading within about 30 seconds. Hardcover and paperbacks take a few days for delivery. They’re prices are better too because of the economy of scale.

**Want a FREE book from My Bookstore? CLICK HERE and have one, right now.**

It’s getting harder to find a “real” bookstore just as it’s getting harder to find a “real” book from a “real” publisher. The big houses are in deep trouble. If not for coloring books and romance novels, they would already be gone. The world has changed – for the better.

Am I happy B&N is opening up? Yes. Will I try to get a few of my works into their hallowed stores? Yes. Will I obsess about it? No. Amazon and the internet are the future and the future is now and has been for a few years.

Pdemy (Perrin on Udemy)(…really…..)(………)

25 Wednesday May 2016

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blog, books, cigars, green space chickens, Perrin Lovett, Perrin on Politics, perrinlovett.me, The Perrin Lovett Show, Udemy, webinars

The old blog is humming along nicely. This is post number 495 (I have D.C. surrounded, yes). I have a couple of books out now, several more shaping up, and a few score more in the hopper. I’m slower than Christmas but I’m getting there.

Here are a few things I have a mind to produce:

More books. More and better and certainly better sellers (you can help by generously maxing out your credit cards on Amazon;

With the paper copies I’m going to include e-books (like this) and maybe even books on tape (or MP3 or whatever sells these days);

More blog traffic via a constantly improving platform. Many changes to come;

Some sort of live-action forum. The Perrin Lovett Show is on life support over at Youtube. Hopefully this sleeper program will revive one day and gain a little more structure and professional design and consistency. I’m also thinking about web-radio of some sort;

Webinars. Webinars are the future and seem to make some money. We could have cigar webinars, gun webinars, political webinars, even a webinar about guns that shoot cigars at politicians. Heck, the sky is the limit;

and…

I always wanted to teach something. The limited experience I have came with terrific feedback. I’m looking into teaching via Udemy or Pdemy as I selfishly refer to it. Here are some courses you may (or most likely may NOT) see from me on Udemy:

HAPPINESS IS BUYING PERRIN LOVETT BOOKS, $20;

Ashton to Zino, Touring the Cigar Alphabet (this one might happen), $35;

JOHN OATS, JOHNNY CASH AND DVORAK, COMPARATIVE NOTES, with notes…, $15;

HYDRAZINE YOUR PROBLEMS AWAY, $500;

Or, for the more timid…

THORAZINE YOUR PROBLEMS AWAY, $75;

Legitimate Uses of Government (10 sec. course), FREE;

Speling made Ezee, $10;

Seduce Your IRS Auditor, $50;

Live to 100! Speed aging explained, $20;

Get More Traffic From FACEBOOK Using Cute “Hook” Pics Like the Following, $20.

Suckers… Someone’s Pinterest/Google.

Fit to be Read

19 Thursday May 2016

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Batman, books, Perrin Lovett

A fitness update. Earlier in the new year I announced my intention to get back into shape or,rather, into athletic shape from so-so shape. It’s coming together nicely. Since New Year’s I have lost nearly 18 pounds and several notches off the belt. I’ve lost more fat but added muscle in its place. I’ve done it through hard work, dieting and another lifestyle alteration (miss my ales…). In addition to weights and my usual style of dirty boxing/mma I’ve lately added a lot of throws and such. Building Batman here.

WB/DC. Google.

And, I have a new book rapidly shaping up. This one, like The Happy Little Cigar Book, basically wrote itself. Unlike Happy it will feature a decent e-book version for Kindle. Less than a month away I’d say. Prepare the debit cards.

The Case of the Mystery Cigars

05 Thursday May 2016

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cigars, mystery, Perrin Lovett, The Happy Little Cigar Book

The Happy Little Cigar Book made me an expert of sorts. In addition to the “review” following I cultivate here people occasionally give me cigar gifts – something to try, judge review, etc. Yesterday a former law client and newly minted millionaire brought me two different boxes of allegedly hand-rolled smokes from the Dominican Republic.

Amazon it!

I know nothing of these cigars other than the larger is obviously a natural wrapper while the smaller is a maduro. They both appear well constructed and smell pretty good. I have never encountered either before in all my travels.

Google may be able to assist me with a little background. Anyway a review shall be forthcoming. I have no idea what to expect. I’ll post some pictures. Investigator Lovett is on the job.

In other news I recently sampled the new (to me) white-labeled Signature by Punch – a terrific little toro.

More to come – stay tuned.

Books, Seconds and Sequels

20 Sunday Mar 2016

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books, cigars, Perrin Lovett, perrinlovett.me, The Happy Little Cigar Book

I hate to admit it but I have soooo many drafts and manuscripts in the hopper – about as many as I have draft articles for this site. Then again, I’m happy to have the material to work with.

Over the past few months I’ve gathered a bit of input from readers, suggestions for making The Happy Little Cigar Book even better. Thank you all. Some want more stories, some more recommendations. Many, if not most, want pictures. I am considering an expanded Second Edition – with pics! I’m also developing ideas for two (or more) Sequels of sorts.

In the existing book I tossed out the idea of Cigar Stories, wall to wall tales about cigars and the folks who smoke them. I’ve certainly heard and lived enough for another volume. Another possibility is a guide book to better cigar shops. I figure I can start in America and maybe later tour Europe for yet another edition.

A tour book would require extensive travel, considerable time and expense. As is I am pressed for sorely needed new equipment and software. A GoFundMe page might be in order. I’ll give that one some thought.

Then there are all the works in progress. You’ll need a new bookshelf before I’m done.

Cheers! Perrin.

Avo No. 2: Where It All Began

19 Friday Feb 2016

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Avo, cigars, The Happy Little Cigar Book, Top Shelf Cigar Shoppe

I was in a cigar shop. It was Top Shelf Cigars of Augusta, Georgia. I made my way around the humidor. Fate turned my gaze to the Dominican section in the back. There I happened upon a happy little box – the Avo Classic No. 2. Memories flooded my mind.

As I wrote in The Happy Little Cigar Book the Avo No. 2 was the first premium Cigar I ever purchased. That first encounter was almost eleven years ago. Times and my tastes have changed. Having gone a good while without an Avo I decided to light one up.

Perrin Lovett.

Back then I smoked after a steak dinner. Now I proceeded having just come off the road. The experience was much the same. A few years older and a few pounds lighter I still thoroughly enjoyed this stick.

IMG_20160219_184551655_HDR

Gettin going. Perrin Lovett.

Avo Uvezian is a famed pianist and composer. On a junket to Switzerland in 1983 he had the brilliant idea to craft his own cigar blend. He teamed with Hendrik Kelner from Davidoff. The rest is history.

Gentlemen’s Gazzett notes the Avo Classic “remains a perfect reflection the cigar maker’s credo.” The Cigar Inspector gives it a 4.5 star rating. I agree. This is certainly not my usual fare. I, being now experienced in what I really enjoy, go for fully bodied and, dare I admit, dirtier cigars – the stuff of black Nicaraguan dirt. However, I found the No. 2 as intriguing today as I did in 2005.

The burn and draw are flawless. Once I had it going I did not once have to touch up. My toro natural was as well composed as any work of Uvezian. The smoke is super smooth like a really good Cuban. The taste is a bit milder perhaps – almost “creamy” whatever that denotes. There is nothing milky about it. I equate this to light and smooth. It is a very easy smoke. Any novice can handle it with ease and without fear. I have recommended this more than once as a first cigar. Veterans will relish the simplicity as well.

Along the way a few sublte notes of pepper and other tastes evolved. None were substantial enough to warrant a label of “spicy” however. Their coming and going mingled perfectly with the overall character of the smoke.

I had no steak or other sustenance beyond a brown ale. Oddly enough I pared this very mild cigar with a Maduro Brown Ale from Cigar City Brewing (Tampa, FL). The haphazard blend came off perfectly.

Perfect is how I can best describe the No. 2. It is a perfect companion for a thoughtful evening of reflection, an overdue private conversation, or any moment of relaxation. And, as a bonus, it won’t leave you with “horse breath” as the tobacconist put it over a decade ago.

IMG_20160219_192009685

Smooth unto the end. Perrin Lovett.

From a master composer and a master blender comes a master’s smoke. Enjoy an Avo Classic at your local smoke shop soon – for old times sake or for a smooth balanced delight.