I used to have a lot more time to blog when I was depressed all the time. Now it seems that life takes more time. I credit feeling better due to good nutrition and a positive attitude.

So - the question for today is this: what has happened since I blogged last, and what have I learned?

Don't send unsolicited e-mails to folks that don't want them, even if they're sincere & devoid of ulterior motive. People don't like that. Lesson learned.

If you're out to lunch with your family and you discover that you forget your money, leaving them at the cafe while you run home to get it is a poor idea because it is considered bad form. I was completely unaware of this. Lesson learned.

If you are wondering if you should say something or not, and you have a few seconds to remain silent and really consider the intelligence of your potential statement, you should take that opportunity. And then don't say it. Lesson learned.

If you replace components in recipes, you can still eat what you want and stay within the dietary guidelines of your 10-day cleanse. Lesson learned.

If you make a delicious chicken taco soup, it will not keep in the fridge forever, and even if it still tastes really good and you experience no ill effects whatsoever, you should never, ever feed it to your wife. Four or five days is too long, apparently. Lesson learned.

If you drink several glasses of water, be prepared to pee at least three times in the 90 minutes after to stop, and be particularly careful not to stop before having to drive from Flower Mound to NRH in rush hour traffic. Lesson learned.

If you get a prickly feeling and feel like arming yourself before you go outside to run errands, arm yourself. Even if nothing happens, you'll feel better for trusting your instincts. Lesson learned.

Concealing a fully loaded M4 in your Hyundai so as not to upset other motorists takes more effort than I additionally thought, and is generally not worth the effort unless you are anticipating being attacked by an armed gang of thugs. If you are not anticipating being attacked, it's really not worth the extra effort involved. Lesson learned.

If your cat poops on the garage floor, your should take extra precautions to make sure that your dog does NOT squeeze past your legs, charge across said garage floor and gobble up said cat poop, because that's appalling beyond measure. Also, in the event that does occur, you should immediately feed said dog Pepto Bismol tablets, saltines and incarcerate the dog in her kennel for a few hours to think about what she did. Lesson learned.

If you go to bed at 11 PM instead of 4 AM, it makes getting up at 8 AM much easier. Lesson learned.

If you have a friend that's a girl and your wife gets a "vibe", don't argue. Lesson learned.

If you have the opportunity to sell a condo for somebody and pocket the profits, take it. Lesson learned.

If the site meter on your blog becomes out of whack for some reason, and your wife is hesitant to give you the password so that you can see who all is reading, don't press the issue, because who is reading your blog isn't as important as you might think, and you will lose the argument because you should have never argued for it in the first place. Lesson learned.

If you do a 10-day cleanse and opt not to cheat, you will lose more weight than if you choose to eat at Kincaids and Pizza Inn during said cleanse. Lesson learned. (I still dropped about 7 lbs, though.)

If you are on the last day of a 10-day cleanse, and you find yourself in a position to eat "The Outlaw" (a succulent 1 lb double cheeseburger served with a smokey, spicy jalapeno, habenero & pequin pepper relish found exclusively a Outlaw Burgers- located in the 100 block of West 4th Street in Justin, TX) you should absolutely seize the opportunity - it's totally worth it. Lesson learned.

OK - I think that's it. Huh - when you write it all out, it was a busier week than I thought.

I'll try really hard to update more next week. Monday is Administrative Monday, so check back then, willya?

Have a cat.