I know its been a little while since I last posted, which is unfortunately becoming a nasty habit of mine so I figured the least I could do would be to explain why.

The past few years have taught me quite the number of things:

• Traveling will change anyone’s life for the better (booze vacations to Mexico not included)
• Every relationship is as volatile as the stock market during a recession… more or less
• Don’t write about pregnancy unless its in a journal that will never be seen by a woman
• Though your job should not dictate how you define yourself, it influences who you are, and we’ve allowed ourselves to define others by their jobs
• North American values are about as misplaced as my keys when I’m in a hurry
• Common sense is just about as rare as the dodo

These are just a few of the things I’ve picked up along my travels through life so far, of course they’re just opinions but that’s what everything in life is about, opinions, since it appears there are few and far between that seem to have any regard for facts these days.

One thing I realized when I returned from Barcelona is that I need a new way to make money. The job I had was fun for what it was, but not something I wanted to do anymore.  So when I got home I started interviewing people in every job I thought I may want to get into.  By interviewing I mean taking these people out to lunch and just chatting about their jobs and industry.

I sat down with a handful of Investment Advisors, Real Estate Agents, and a variety of guys in one sales environment or another.  None of the positions interested me for one reason or another.

I realized I’m not one to just sit around in the penalty box of life and wait for my time to expire, and I will likely be interested in a number of ventures throughout my life. I am not anticipating to follow a linear career path.

My main objective is to be outside of the rat race and working on my own terms by 35. I think these are reasonable expectations that I can meet.  But the freedom I was looking for could only be met by founding an online business or having some sort of revenue generated on the WWW.  I want to have the freedom to work from home (or anywhere else in the world for that matter) and so as of March/April 2008 I started trying to figure out how to do that.

Since there are no schools for starting an online business, I realized it was basically up to me to fill my head with as much new and helpful information that I could.  A lot of people online are scam artists, looking to make a quick buck on the backs of the desperate with no sense of ethics or business longevity. Then there are others that provide a substantial amount of great content but the hardest part is…WHERE THE HELL DO I START?!?

Affiliate marketing is where I decided to first plant my roots as I decided if i started a site designed to sell other people’s products it would teach me about web design, the challenges of affiliate marketing as well as eventually force me to learn SEO (Search Engine Optimization) which is how to get good search rankings within Google and other search engines to have people visit my site for free.

My first site is almost complete and is called www.TheFatLossAuthority.com

The video on the front page (should be available within a week) is literally the best of about 17 other videos and unfortunately was filmed on the first day of a very short haircut, lesson learned.  I’ve also learned the consequences of outsourcing work to “professionals” you’ve never worked with before.  The saying “its hard to find good help these days” sticks out in my mind.

My second site which is still in the building stages is called www.HeartMyShoes.com and is geared strictly towards women looking to have a little leisure time at work and check out what other women wear on their feet and of course….judge them accordingly.  (If you are female and reading this PLEASE visit the site and submit some of your shoes, I NEEEEED more submissions).  This site is barely out of the beta stages and there is already an argument going on between 2 girls.  This has been a lot of fun so far and my goal for this site is strictly to generate as much traffic as I can.  In the 3 weeks I have been working on this site I have learned more about web design and coding than my entire year running this blog.  IT IS EXHAUSTING.

My third attempt might be learning how to develop membership sites online and every intricacy that goes along with that. That’s something I am currently looking into during my current ZERO SUM PAYCHECK 14 HOURS DAYS.

So that is what’s going on in my world these days.  Its a lot of fun but the challenges are steeper than climbing Mount Fuji (not as bad as Everest, but still bad).

Both my biggest challenge and advantage at the moment is living at home.  Now don’t get me wrong, I love my family dearly, and the fact that they’ve been accepting of my current aspirations is a clear testament to the type of people they are, but after living on my own for so many years, the desire to leave the nest again is extremely strong.

But the paradox is that this is also my advantage.  I can pursue these current goals on the savings I’ve built without the responsibilities of a mortgage, family, or 9-5 job. These are huge blow backs to face later on and would easily cut my productivity  90%.  So though living at home is my biggest challenge as I want to be residing in my own residence (even if i’m renting) and starting to build up my savings again, being back in the nest is easily my biggest advantage at the moment.

I hear so many people say, “well, I’m buying a new place so lets have fun now, because once I get my place I won’t have any money left to do much more than maybe go out for dinner once a week”. Needless to say, hearing this reminds me of what I am working towards, the freedom to, not just do whatever I want, but the freedom to do exactly what I want. And I think that’s worth the struggle.

So I figure I have another 2-3 months of serious working and hustling to do before I will have to get a J-O-B and scale everything else down to part-time in hopes of a breakthrough.

But its been a blast so far, well minus the fact that I am hemmoraging money.

I will do my best to post more often and keep you updated. Please subscribe to my updates so you’ll know when I update Perfectly Turbulent.

If anyone out there wants to provide a Guest Post for Perfectly Turbulent that you think would be good, let me know.

I’ve always been the guy that if I read something scientific that’s either beneficial to me or just sounds really cool, I’ll give it a shot. I remember back in highschool I read an article about the aphrodisiac effects of eating celery. (Check out a similar article HERE.) For weeks I would show up at my friends house to go out and while they were downing 6 cans of liquid courage I would be on my fourth stalk of celery. Thinking back now, I don’t remember ever tracking the results of that experiment, but I do remember learning that celery has a lot of fiber. Think about that.

Then there was the time where I was told by a work colleague about a 100% natural ancient Peruvian herb that is supposed to skyrocket your sex drive and essentially make you insatiable. I had a girlfriend at this point in my life so I was quick to sign up for this one. The herb itself is an adaptagen that slowly integrates itself into your body to also help cope with mental and physical stress. So I started out with two pills a day and slowly made my way up to four a day. (2 breakfast, 1 lunch, 1 dinner) At one point I made the mistake of drinking an espresso while taking this herb and let me tell you, I felt like I was a super hero. I remember sitting at my desk in the open concept office I used to work in and I felt as if I had super hearing. Believe me, I know it sounds ridiculous, but bare with me. I could hear a girl behind me making a personal call and chatting with a friend about what she was up to that weekend. As I was the manager at the time I turned around to give her the ‘ol “Get back to work” glare and sure enough she was at the other end of the office maybe 30ft away, on the other side of 5-10 other sales reps. I’m telling you, Super Hero. As for the sex drive portion of this experiment, lets just say I had to stop taking it because it was just too much, my libido could have been described as driving a Ferrari on rocket fuel with a bottomless gas tank.

My latest experiment comes from a Men’s Health Article entitled The World’s Most Effective Diet. The entire article is about the authors lifestyle of fasting once a week, typically for 36 hours. Let me preface this experience by saying I am the LAST person I’d ever expect to try a 24-hr fast. I LOVE eating. Every aspect. Every minute. Every second. Just LOVE IT. But the part of the tag line that got me interested in the first place is that in his research the author found zero side effects to fasting, and it actually makes eating the foods you love that much more enjoyable. So, if this prophet claims he can make a veal parmigiana sandwich with peppers and mushrooms MORE enjoyable for me AND improve my health, who am I to not test his theory.

The article recommends building up to 36 hour fasts, but I wasn’t that ambitious yesterday. So I decided to try a full 24 hours and see how it goes. I figured if I can make it 24 hours without punching a baby or eating our family cat, then I’d know I could eventually handle the 36 hour haul.

Here’s some quick facts about how fasting improves your overall health:

Mitochondria inside your body’s cells use carbohydrates to make cell fuel. The molecular by-product: free radicals that damage DNA, impair cellular function, and promote cancer. Here’s how fasting may help.

1. Fewer free radicals During a fast, the mitochondria, sensing a lack of food, become more efficient. Like a cleaner-burning fire, they start producing fewer free radicals per calorie burned, says Eric Ravussin, Ph.D., a clinical investigator at Pennington Biomedical Research Center.

2. More antioxidants The diminishing number of free radicals is met by an increase in antioxidant production within your cells. These enzymes “search and destroy free radicals,” says Mark Mattson, Ph.D., a neuroscientist at the National Institutes of Health.

3. Stronger cells This cleaner calorie-burning also produces a surge in beneficial stress hormones, such as cortisol and growth hormone. “Exercise during a fast and the increase is even greater,” says Ravussin, adding that the hormones prepare cells for worse stresses. “They’ll better resist tumors and rebound faster from a heart attack.”

I found the above super motivating for me, especially since I typically don’t stop eating throughout the day. I’m that guy that’s always munching on something. Fruits, nuts, a sandwich, a salad, a protein shake, there’s really no end. So at 1pm after finishing a rather large shake I decided that other than water I wouldn’t consume anything else until 1pm the next day and then spend Friday and Saturday eating only fruits and vegetables for added “fun”.

This task seemed rather daunting when at 4pm all I could think of were the six chicken breasts waiting for me in the fridge. I’ll admit that I nearly quit then, and twice without thinking I washed and nearly bit into an apple before catching myself. Thankfully from 6-8pm I had to attend my little brother’s Grade 8 Graduation so only in fleeting moments did I realize how hungry I was. But the true test of will power came at 830pm when I offered to take my brother and some of his buddies to McDonald’s for a quick bite before their graduation dance started. I don’t like McDonalds and rarely eat there, but standing at the counter listening to them order made my stomach leap into contractions that felt like I was certain to give birth to triplets.

Around 10pm I think my body began to accept what was going on. My earlier headache was now a numbed sensation and as I sat in front of my computer I quickly realized concentrating on a blog post was out of the question. I accepted I was going to go completely through with this fast and so I found a movie to watch online until I was tired enough to go to sleep.

My brain, I believe mimicking the fight my body was currently battling internally gave me nothing but dreams of war and fear. At one moment I woke up startled and scared from a particular hellish nightmare. By 930am I was out of bed and trying to find things to do that required zero brain power but would kill time until 1pm. Thank you Arrested Development and Facebook.

Surprisingly when the fast was over I felt like I could easily go another 6 hours but it was starting to bug me that I couldn’t even concentrate long enough to read a four page magazine article. So at 1pm I drove to a friend’s condo as she had made some superb veggie ground round and salsa burritos that were eaten like goldfish in a piranha tank. So after I inhaled 3 above-average sized burritos, a half bowl of cherries, some strawberries, and a little apple pie I was feeling a lot better. We then discussed if eating so much after a fast was a good idea, and though neither of us knew the answer we decided it was likely not the best move, but I was already full and didn’t particularly care.

After being off the fast for nearly 12 hours now, I notice that I feel much calmer and clearer than I have in months. I even fell into the deepest, darkest nap later this afternoon. It felt like I had been out for 2 minutes and it was an hour, I was shocked and totally refreshed.

Another aspect of the article that acted as further inspiration for this experience was a part of the logical reasoning. There is a theory that states, “without digestion of food to deal with, the liver can scrub the blood, ridding it of pesticides, food additives, and other toxins. These exit through your pores, sinuses, colon, and urine.” By my 22nd hour I could feel some toxins beginning to rise to the surface. Identically to the author’s story my tongue coated over with a white film, and my breath was not pleasant; its said these are classic signs of detoxification. I believe if I would have went the full 36 hours though I would have seen a skin breakout as well, but that’s speculative.

Now here I sit at my dinner table at 2am, twelve hours after hitting the 24 hour mark and I feel fantastic. Clear, healthy, and uber serene. I plan to wait a couple weeks before trying again, and at least a month before attempting the 36 hour fast. But if I do that one, I’ll be sure to record my experience.

I highly suggest the 24 hour fast. Its not only a matter of health and a great test of will power, but the end results so far are impressive to say the least. If anyone else out there has done this, I would love to hear your experiences as well.

If you have any ideas for further life experiments you think I may be interested in, please let me know.

We all called her White Lightning. My beautiful 1998 Pontiac Sunfire. I bought White Lightning from a small Korean girl who, for one reason or another, was leaving the country in a hurry. The rear seat was covered in a huge sheet of Mashimaro, and the car smelt of a lifetime of failed attempts to quit smoking, but I loved it just the same. I remember the owner asked $6500, so I gave her a nearly insulting low-ball offer and she caved, it was meant to be.

White Lightning lasted me a good 5 years, but with a fair bit of rust and no AC as the summer approaches, I decided it was time to buy something new(er).

Over the years, no matter what I’ve read on buying a car, the consensus seems to be the same, DON’T BUY NEW.

Here’s an excerpt from the article “10 Things To Never Buy New” from MSN Finance:

• Cars. The average new car loses 12.2% of its value in the first year, according to Edmunds.com; on a $20,000 car, that’s $2,440, or more than $200 a month. Some cars depreciate even faster, depending on demand, incentives offered and other factors.

Why not let someone else take that hit? Not only will you be able to save money (or buy more car), but you’ll pay less for insurance. Cars are better-built and last longer than ever before, which means you’re less likely to get a lemon. Companies like CarFax allow you to trace a car’s history. Many late-model used cars are still under warranty, and a trusted mechanic can give your potential purchase the once-over to spot any problems. Take a look at the Used Car Research section of MSN Autos for a lot of great information.

Exception: You can pay cash and you really, really want that new-car smell.

So “new” was out of the question, but I had to decide exactly how much I wanted to spend. I started out logically taking all factors into consideration: how long I planned to drive this car, current expenses, cash flow, and what I would be spending on White Lightning in the next few months anyways. With these figures in mind I decided I would go no higher than $15,000 after tax and I would be looking for something in a 2-door from 2002-2005 depending on the model and kilometers driven. This should be easy

After scouring through the Auto Trader Guide, dealerships, and more used car websites than I care to admit, a funny thing started to happen. The magic of marketing took over and the ghosts of unnecessary purchases and faulty logic began haunting my days and nights. Everywhere I went all I would notice were cars, cars, cars. What year is that? How many KMs on that bad boy? Sweet rims! Is that an ‘08? I like the spoiler? Heated seats?….beautiful. And somewhere along the way I entered myself in the “How can I rationalize this purchase? contest”

By my second week of research I had somehow circumvented my own level thinking and decided $20,000 was my new golden number. So off I went looking for and test driving all of these fancy smancy used cars. I went through an ‘06 Volkswagen Passat, an ‘05 Jetta TDIs, an Eclipse Spider convertible and each time I got into the drivers seat there was something that wasn’t right. I thought it was seats for a while and usually blamed German Engineering, but essentially, my super-ego was in the midst of an all out, bare knuckles brawl with my id. (note: thank you wikipedia). The epic battle came to a close as I stood staring at a nice 2004 Audi A4 listed for $18,000. It was then that I realized how the rational mind can quickly become prey to selfish desires.

I look around and I see a mass of people living well outside of their means on borrowed time and borrowed dollars. Everyone wants so badly to have the luxuries that they likely can’t afford that they’ve become a slave to their toys and their heaping mounds of debt. That’s not the lifestyle I had in mind.

So with my id lying bloody and beaten on the ground, my good friends, reality and common sense, were free to return to the ring. I realized all of these cars were merely objects that I WANTED, a luxury that I thought would be cool to play with; but they weren’t anything I actually needed. What I needed was a car. After the “cool factor” dissipated I started to remember what a huge waste of money cars are in the first place. Between depreciation, insurance, maintenance and GAS, GAS, GAS and GAS, automobiles are nothing but a shiny ditch for which to shovel your money into. So I stepped away from the Audi and last Saturday I picked up my new Black 2004 Honda Civic.

In the end, I stayed well below my initial figure and though the engine is as gutless as a nun in a street fight, I couldn’t be happier with my selection. I’m also not ashamed to admit that this last week I’ve been driving around for no other reason than to enjoy having a car that doesn’t accept Cassettes and has Air Conditioning. Keepin’ cool while listening to N’sync. Look out beachstrip.

Now that I’ve fought the demons of marketing and won, its easy to see when other people are slipping into its grasp. The other day I mentioned what I had paid, what I decided to finance, and what my rate of interest was in a discussion with a friend of mine and he said the following, “Well that’s a pretty high rate, I think I’m going to buy a brand new car, their rates are as low as 0.9%.” I’m not sure if he was joking, or if it didn’t cross his mind at the time, but while .9% is a great rate of interest, a new car would also be $10-15,000 dollars more from his pocket when all is said and done. To each their own I suppose.

As for me, my biggest concern now is what I should name my car. I’m leaning towards Black Stallion, Black Beauty, or maybe Black Magic… your suggestions are encouraged.

Happy Motoring.