Friday, November 9, 2012

UltraMarathon Man - Dean Karnazes

One of the my favorite passions is running.  I could blog just about running, and I would never get bored.

DEAN'S LEGS!


The one runner I look up to the most is Dean Karnazes, the Ultra Marathon Man.  What separates Dean from any other runner I have followed or met, is his drive.  My friend gave me a copy of his book, 'Ultra Marathon Man', and I finally got around to reading it.  I was blown away!


Below are some quotes from the book that I treasure and use as motivation:
Most dreams die a slow death.  They're conceived in a moment of passion, with the prospect of endless possibility, but often languish and are not pursued with the same heartfelt intensity as when first born.  Slowly, subtly, a dream becomes elusive and ephemeral.  People who've let their own dreams die become pessimists and cynics.  They feel that the time and devotion spent on chasing their dreams were wasted.  The emotional scars last forever.  "It can't be done," they'll say, when you describe your dream.  "It'll never happen."
This part of the book really stood out to me.  I feel I have followed this path many of times in my life, and when I reflect on what went wrong, it was because of lack of intensity.
Runners are real people.  They don't run for money or recognition, they do it out of passion.
Runners are the most peculiar, caring, funniest, interesting people I have ever met.  Some of my best friendships were forged running.

Check out his website www.ultramarathonman.com and find out what he is up to next!

Why 2013 will be more expensive for bacon

"What can I get for you today?"
"2 eggs, scrambled.  Toast, Hashbrowns, and a side of bacon."
"Ok, bacon is an extra $4, is that fine?"
"Whhhaaaaat?"

This is a fictitious conversation that may happen at diners across the country in 2013.  Why might this be the case?  Well you have to look at the costs of production to go from farm to table to understand...

1.  Farmer "Dennis" raises pigs
  • Costs of feeding pig, taxes on land, and transportation to slaughterhouse 
2.  At slaughterhouse
  • Cost to slaughter pig, package pig, deliver to grocery store or restaurant or distributor.
3.  At Restaurant
  • Overhead (restuarant equipment, taxes, wages)
I highlighted Costs of Feeding Pigs because of two main factors: Bernanke money printing, and the severe drought suffered throughout the Midwest in 2012.  Bernanke's money printing is seeping into the system, but the dought might have the biggest impact.  Since the pigs feed off of corn and grain, farmers realized High Corn Prices to Stay, and brought their pigs to slaughter earlier than expected. This rush of pigs to slaughter will DECREASE the cost for bacon in the short run because of an increase in supply, but will lead to an INCREASE the cost for bacon in the long term as there will be less pigs to slaughter.

Just "food" for thought!