Jared's "Lost in Life"

Over the years, this blog has had a wide array of alliteration-based names. The original name was "Lost in Laie" which took how I felt navigating my life at the time and my location of Laie, Hawaii. When I would go home to Mesa for the summer breaks the blog was called "Menace in Mesa." That was a reference to a quote by a church leader saying that anyone over 25 and single was a menace to society. For the nearly 10 years I lived in Guam the blog was retitled once again to "Gone In Guam," which I thought was still pithy and fit well. Upon moving back to Arizona, but no longer single and a "menace" I decided to change the name to "Phloudering in Phoenix" -- a placeholder name I had a hard time replacing with something better. I was unemployed when I moved to Arizona, so... floundering. I had to play fast and loose with the spelling and the fact that I don't actually live in Phoenix. After some time and consideration I have decided it is time to once again readjust the title of this frankly neglected blog. 

World, welcome to "Lost in Life." A return to the vibe and meaning of the original title, but now untied to the location I am in. I think that as I change my life and location this title may just be able to stay with me for the long haul. In truth, I am feeling a bit lost in life. Not some major existential crisis or anything. But I was thinking about my life and the direction it has been going in recently. Then it occurred to me today that I hadn't posted here in nearly 5 years! 

To say that my life has changed a lot since that time would be an understatement. I am unsure at this time, but I am debating on going back in time and recreated posts to fill in the gap. 

Here's a short summary of the major life changes since then: 

• The weight loss I last posted about in 2018 has pretty much stuck. I'm still at a healthy weight. 
• I've taken my chosen method of exercise, running, to a new level. Now I run more than a 5K every weekday before I got to work. I have run a formal half marathon twice and plan to run a full marathon in 2024.
• I now work at EVIT teaching computers full time, where I was part time in 2018. I needed to make more money because...
•  My wife of 12 years decided in 2019 that she didn't love me any more. She summarily dumped me and I was a single father for some time. 
• I couldn't let a good personal tragedy like that go to waste, so I tried my hand at standup. I got to the point where I was doing standup 2-3 nights a week and started hosting at a comedy club as a regular. 
• My friend and co-worker, Steve Grosz, had a stroke (but did fully recover). That openend up an opportunity for me to fill in on the radio station KPNG 88.7 FM the Pulse. That turned into a daily spot. 
• That whole covid-19 pandemic thing happened. I stayed on the air and even got more airtime as a result. And with that, my stage time as a standup comedian slowly diminished. 
• Steve Grosz then quit the school and radio station and I shortly was the primary personality for the morning drive at the station until the new station manager ran the place to the ground I left. 
• I met, dated briefly, and then married a woman I met online who lived in Utah. Her name is Oogii and she and her daughter moved to join me and my two kids in Mesa. Her daughter is named Zaya, which matched the name of my daughter, Maia, surprisingly well. But it does cause some confusion when we yell for one or the other.
• I took a second teaching job as Mesa Community College as an adjunct professor nights and weekends.
• I was awarded the best high school teacher in the East Valley by a newspaper.

And now you are somewhat caught up, albeit without any of the juicy details. I feel like the last 5 years has permanently changed who I am. For better or worse. I don't know where this crazy life will take me or what is lying ahead. What I do know is that I'm just stumbling my way through it like everyone else. And that's why I am now... "Lost in Life."

169 and Feelin' Fine...

The holidays are always tricky for the weight watchers of the world. This has been my first Thanksgiving and Christmas below 200 lbs. since I was in diapers. So naturally, I've been a bit nervous going into the season. With both holidays now past, let's see where my current weight is as of this morning...

For the eagle eyed this needs no explanation. But for the rest of us, we are looking at a chart showing my weight on a monthly basis from Jan '18 to Dec '18. On the high end we see roughly 250 lbs. but on the low end, the count is now a svelte 169.6 lbs. My first goal of 220 blew by. My second goal of 200 is in the rear view mirror and now my third goal of 185 seems downright chubby. I settled on 175 (which is where the small trophy icon sits). Even through the dreaded Thanksgiving/Christmas challenge I have reached a new personal record of 169 lbs. 

I guess that means I can really let myself go at the New Year's Eve party. Cheese ball, here I come!

What is That Between My Legs? Is That A...

This journey that has been my weight loss has been filled with adventure, twists and turns. Things I never saw coming continue to surprise and occasionally delight me. Today one such event occured. As I was doing a round of sit-ups--as I often do now--I paused in mid-crunch to look at Anna across the room as she was speaking to me. I realized that I was able to see her... from between my thighs. Is that...? Can it...? Could it possibly be true?

Yes! For the first time since in utero, I have a thigh gap. I hadn't thought it was metaphysically possible, yet there is was. In all of its negative spacial glory. I'm now the proud owner of my very own thigh gap. Oh, how the other guys at the gym will be so jealous.

But now as I write this, I realize this is a bit of a responsibility I am not prepared for. What do I do with a thigh gap? How do I take care of it? Do you feed a thigh gap? If so, what? Or does feeding it actually kill it? So many unanswered questions. I've said this before and I'll say it again, "Where is a supermodel when you need one?" If anyone is well qualified to answer my litany of questions they are.

I suppose I better stop blogging and get onto Google to find out more about thigh gap nurturing. It's too late for "What to Expect When You're Gap-ing." I better jump straight to "On Becoming Gap-wise." 

I'm Still Demented...

I'm happy to announce my return to radio with a new radio show called "Still Demented." This show pays homage to Dr. Demento, (but not close enough to be sued...). We (my co-host is Steve Grosz) play fun novelty music, stand-up comedy and just have a great time.

We air each Sunday at 8am and again 8pm. You can listen live in the Phoenix metropolitan area on 88.7 FM. We stream online at http://pulseradio.fm.  We also will have each episode available as a podcast; look for it on iTunes.

Come on, listen along and be demented with me!

Let's Do Lunch... with My New Podcast...

I've been a busy boy lately. I've been continuing my efforts on JaredBodine.com as a tech review site. I've been entertaining out-of-town in-laws for the last month. And I've been renewing my efforts to get my IT business, Bodine Tech, off the ground.

But, while doing all of that, I've also been producing my own podcast.

Let's Do Lunch is a podcast with a friend of mine from high school, Jon K., that I recently reconnected with. We always have fun and off-the-wall conversations. I decided it would be fun to meet with him every 2 weeks over lunch and let the rest of the world join in our good times.

Let's Do Lunch is the length of a typical lunch hour minus travel, so about 40-50 minutes. It's available on all the standard platforms as well. The links to all of the various sources is below. Next time you are eating lunch by yourself, or doing house work, or just want some company, give us a listen!

• iTunes
• Google Play Music
• Stitcher
• TuneIn

Sea World, 2016...

Good times... but I did learn a lesson. Don't show "Blackfish" to your spouse the night before you go to Sea World, it will ruin her day...

Watching Star Wars Episode 1 with my 5-year-old...

So, to get ready for the new Star Wars, I'm re-watching the first 6. My 5-year-old, Maia, decided to watch it with me. Half the fun has been her reaction to it all.

This is just the first fifteen minutes of Episode 1:

• The first time the evil Sith Master is shown: "Is that Jesus?"
• When the battle droids are landing on Naboo: "Why are they going there? Oh, I know, they are having a parade!"
• When she first sees Jar-Jar Binks: "Who is that horse-thingy? Is that a girl?"
• When the Jedi follow Jar-Jar to his underwater home: "I think this may be a bit too scary for kids like me."

This is going to be an interesting marathon...

Family Superlatives....

Out of the blue the other day, Benji says to me, "Dad, I'm stupendous."

"Really? You are? How do you know?"

"I just am," he replies matter-of-factly.

"Ok," I pursue, "so if you are stupendous, what am I?"

"Hm," he thinks for a second. "You are just normal."

"Oh, so what about Maia? Is she stupendous, too."

"No," he declares with authority. "She is fantastic."

"I see. So you are stupendous, Maia is fantastic and I am 'just normal'."

"Yeah."

"What about Mommy? What is she?"

For this one he takes a long time to consider his options. "She is... stinky balls!"

Honestly, I have no idea where he gets this stuff, but just for the sake of those who are keeping track, here's the breakdown:

Benji = stupendous
Maia = fantastic
Dad = just normal
Mom = stinky balls

Noted...

Racial Identity...

Racial identity is a funny thing. In 2014 there was a study that found millions of American change their racial identity on occasions, particularly many hispanic individuals began reporting themselves as white. And we can't forget NAACP leader Rachel Dolezal who was quite genealogically white, yet identified as black (and fooled others to believe she was black for quite some time as well).

In our family, race is understandably a bit less...er, black and white. I guess you could say we put the "asian" in "caucasian." While I know that I am as white as sunscreen on cream cheese, I can't help but feel that we are a predominantly Asian family. My wife is Vietnamese, and our kids are 50/50, so we as a family unit are as caucasian as we are Asian. But in our family traditions, diet, and other ways we align with the Asian culture more than our neighbors. I still have difficulty keeping my shoes on when I visit the homes of friends.

What got me thinking about this subject today was something I observed in my three-year-old, Benji. Anna has been endeavoring to keep the apps on his hand-me-down iPad educational rather than solely for entertainment. So, when adding and inspecting an app for Benji, she chose an avatar for him. This app has a set number of choices. Anna chose the young asian boy avatar for Benji, since that is the closest approximation she could see.

Then later, I was watching Benji play with that app. He found the settings and when browsing the avatar choices, changed his likeness to a boy of the same age, but white. It was clear to me, that Benji currently sees himself more like that boy than the one Anna had selected for him. It's interesting to know how your children see themselves. I wonder if we had stayed in Guam with a more diverse culture if he would see himself more like the Asian avatar or still as the white one.

I have yet to ask Maia how she sees herself. I'm sure this is an issue that will come into play more as our children grow up.

Although I am spending time to blog about this, I don't really understand the big issue with racial identity. It used to frustrate me how much we hear about and debate on race issues in our media and culture, and now I'm just burned out on the subject.

I miss Guam in that way; we were all of a different (and often mixed) race. That consistent diversity kept us all feeling a bit more equal in a way. Sure we acknowledge cultural differences and would have some racial clicks, but our forced proximity and volume of diversity make the subject a non-issue. I remember someone visiting me at work one day and observing that I was the only white guy in my office. I hadn't even noticed it until that point. I was. And it didn't matter. And it was great.

Now back in the racially heated contiguous 48, I feel like there is no escape from the constant onslaught of these biases and issues.  I'm not pointing fingers or blaming anyone. It is the way it is. And I wish it could be different.

I wish we could all just see that we are all of some mixed-race of some kind and we all come from diverse backgrounds. At some point in our past we all share common ancestors. I would like to think we could keep that in mind when we interact with each other, but I'm not naive enough to think that will happen any time soon.

At any rate, my point is that this is all a matter of perspective. If we could be more empathetic and identify with some aspect of other ethnicities, we could be more understanding of each other. That's not to say I support the deception of Rachel Dolezal. We should also be true to who we really are. But if we could learn to identify with other races, in some way, we could let the little unintentional gafs go and start the healing.

I'm not an Asian, and no, I don't play one on TV. But after the experiences I've had over the past decade of my life, I can understand how one would start to feel as if their cultural, and even racial, identity can drift. Our little blended family can't even agree on our race. But we still do now and always will love each other for who we are. And that is enough.

Not Quite 5 Minutes Yet...

Those of you who follow me on Facebook (both of you) know that I've been doing some acting as of late. I wouldn't say I have really made a significant impact, but I've had a number of gigs from January to date. Here's a smattering of what I've done that's online. There's a couple movies and TV shows that are yet to air, but I'll post those as well.

If you add all of my screen time up together, you may actually get 5 minutes... someday...

Shibuya, Tokyo - The Busiest Intersection in the World...

I've been back from Japan since June, but am still slowly cracking away at making my videos from the trip. Here's the latest from Tokyo's famous Shibuya intersection. This is widely regarded as the world's busiest intersection. Enjoy:

"I Want My Dirty Dirty Diaper..."

Kids never cease to amaze parents. Here's an example from our recent trip to Japan. While there, Benji decided he could no longer be saddled with clean diapers. It's sort of like how you become attached to those favorite blue jeans way after they are worn out...



Next time, I will be wearing a diaper, too. That way I can give him my leftover dirty dirty diaper...

Watching the 2015 Super Blood Moon with Kids...

I had heard that some people are preparing for the end of the world based on the 2015 Super Blood Moon we had last night. As we were out for a family walk, we saw the shadow of the earth taking over the moon's glow.

I got home and set up my camera, fixed to track to moon as it rises and goes red. When reviewing the footage I realized how amusing my kid's conversations were, so that became the new focus of the video.



I didn't get stellar footage with my basic home-use equipment. But hey, I can get better footage again in only 18 more years...

Super Blood Moon rising

Super Blood Moon and a plane passing on the right

High Life in Pinetop...

It just so happened that my parents found themselves with an extra room in a rental property in Pinetop for the week, so my wife, kids and I got to be the lucky recipients of the vacancy.

We actually stayed a week in a cabin once before this summer already. Anna was a bit bored. So, this time we made sure we had enough activities to keep her from feeling that way. I was perfectly fine doing nothing and relaxing. But I had fun being busy, too.

Our place was more of a townhouse than cabin, but we called it a cabin anyway. The "cabin" is in a complex with a main office connected to a game room (complete with pool table, ping pong, checkers, Foosball, etc), a weight room, a Jacuzzi and there's always fresh popcorn on tap. They also had bikes to rent.

Anna is actually riding a bike that my parents brought. Maia loved the bike she borrowed.

My dad brought up his inflatable kayak and we took it out for a spin a couple times in Rainbow Lake.

 Of course, we couldn't have come this close without visiting the Snowflake Temple. I was shocked at how far in the middle of nowhere the Snowflake temple is. If I hadn't known better, I would think I was in the wrong place up until I saw the Angel Moroni in the distance.

 While we were at it, we took a small detour to the very small one-horse town called Woodruff. It's about 30 miles out of Snowflake. It's remarkable to think that people actually still live there. Especially when you see the types of homes there...

My favorite part about this home is that I saw a new satellite dish mounted on the other side. 

 My grandma is from Woodruff. No offence to the residents, but it's just a bit too slow for my speed. I am sure grandma can honestly say it's a nice place to be from, but probably not in.

On our last full day, we drove out to Sunrise, the ski resort. It's summer in Arizona, so you can imagine that we did not ski. The park is open with activities like sledding, and riding the ski lifts to the peak for the view. We did the latter only. It was still surprisingly cold. We had to break down and pay way too much for hot cocoa at the lodge at the top.

And, just like that, the whole week passed us by. It went so fast, I felt like we barely got there when it was time to go home. This time, we keep Anna busy enough to avoid boredom. The only problem is that it worked too well. Now that we are back home we are all bored of our regular life...

That's all of us except Benji, who took this untouched photo. Not bad for a 2 year old, eh?

Music in Your Head, with Trekz Titanium safe headphones...

I finally found safe headphones that look, sound and work great, finally. 

I've always been on the hunt for good headphones. I have a dozen around my house at any time, much to the chagrin of my wife. I suppose I'm always looking for that perfect sound, and not quite finding it. For every positive, there's a flip-side of problems with headphones.

• The problem with ear buds is that they can be uncomfortable and cause fatigue. 
• The problem with over-the-ear headphones is that they get hot and sweaty and are cumbersome to carry around.
• The problem with corded headphones is that the cord gets in the way. 
• The problem with Bluetooth is the sound is potentially less full range.
• The problem with noise cancelling headphones is that effect can damage your hearing with prolonged use.
• The problem with noise isolating headphones is that you may be unaware of important ambient sounds around you.
• The problem with neither noise cancelling or isolating headphones is that you are then less likely to hear the music well. 

Well, now I think I may have just found the solution to these problems and more. Introducing

Trekz Titanium

the new Trekz Titanium by AfterShokz!

These use a new and booming technology called "bone conduction." Basically, rather than sit on your ear, these sit in front of your ear and pulse the beats through your bones to the base of your ears! 

I've been using bone conduction for years, but in a different way. If you've ever used a Jawbone Bluetooth handsfree headset, you have too. That used bone conduction to send sound out. This uses the same technology to send it in. 

It's safer, too. Why? Because 1) you can't damage your ear drum with loud music and 2) you won't be cut off from the ambient sounds around you. You can hear the music clearly, and also what is going on around you as needed.

These have a great bluetooth driven wonders last 6 hours on a charge, are water and sweat resistant and include perks like dual noise canceling mics, voice prompts, smartphone integration and a 2-year warranty. 

Check out this cool video about them:

AfterShokz Trekz Titanium 

I already ordered mine. This is not available to the public yet, so if you are interested, you can go through me.

Follow my exclusive link here. Once in, you can sign in with your own account or for simplicity, you can sign in with your Facebook account (it won't post to your timeline). You may have to sign in then click this link again to make sure the offer and discounted price shows up for you.

There is a limited number of people who can get this, so if you want to be one of them, act NOW!

If you want to be the first person you know to have these, check out this link and contribute. Once these go for sale in public, the price will go up and you'll be late to the party.

Check them out now! The offer expires and has a limit of people who can get them at this lower than retail rate!

Cool New Video Website Creation Tool: Covert VideoPress...

Ok, so I don't normally do a lot of product promotion on this site, but I just had to pass this one on. I even talked about his on my homepage. I've been playing around with a cool new product called, "Covert VideoPress."

I've made a ton of videos over the years and have over 100 of them on YouTube now. Because of the licensing I use (I let Google pay for the royalties of the music in my videos), I have yet to monetize on my creations. But, Covert VideoPress is a tool that I, or anyone really, can use to make money on videos, EVEN IF YOU DIDN'T CREATE THEM! I could try to explain it forever, but this video does a better job than I would... Check it out and see for yourself!

A Benji By Any Other Name...

You know you have a trouble-making toddler when this happens. We have been working on teaching Benji our real names, in case he gets lost and doesn't tell people his mom's name is "mommy." So we asked him what his full name is.

His reply: "Benji, No!"

The boy has heard "no" after his name so much, he now thinks it is his last name...

New Name, New Life...

In the time that I have owned this blog, it has gone through quite some changes. It started with an awful puke-green theme that was practically 8-bit and called "Lost in Laie." Then I cleaned up the theme, but kept the same as I was still in Laie, Hawaii going to school. 

When I'd take long breaks at my parent's house for the summer, it was called, "Menace in Mesa." And just as I was doing another overhaul of the face, I moved to Guam thus naming the blog, "Gone in Guam."

Well, now after 9 long years, it's time for a new skin and new title to match the new locale and phase of my life. I've packed up the family and left Guam to live life a little differently. I am still doing my real estate investments under Bodine Enterprises. I'm also keeping my IT skills fresh with Bodine IT and Bodine SEO, a search engine optimization service. I'm sure you have noticed there is no 9-5-er in there. I am considering getting back into the radio game, my old employer Kim Komando is hiring now, and I'm back in town. 

Long story short, I'm doing a lot, but in a few odd directions, so for now, the blog is now renamed the oddly-spelled but phonetically correct "Phloundering in Phoenix." 

More to come...

Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... Why... ?

Anyone who has ever had a toddler knows the infamous "Why" cycle. A well-meaning parent makes the effort to try to explain some faucet of modern life to their youngin' only to get a follow-up question: "Why?"

Answering that question only spawns another question: "Why?"

Naturally, that loving parent patiently attempts to dig in deeper to get to the core of that probe, only to be met again with another "Why?"

After about 10 cycles, the parent either starts to pull their hair or look for duct tape to wrap around the little inquisitive terrorist's head.

Not long ago, we were all out for a family outing. I don't remember which one of us made the mistake of entertaining the first "Why?" but it happened. Benji couldn't wrap his mind some concept (or more likely just likes watching us stumble to find the next answer). When Anna and I finally gave up, our four-year-old, Maia, decided to take over, which was fine with us.

To our surprise, the back-and-forth did not go the way one would have anticipated.

Benji: "Why?"

Maia: "Because."

Benji: "Why?"

Maia: "Hm. That's why!"

Benji: (Pause) "Ohhh. Thaaat's why!"

Conversation over.

Anna and I looked over at each other in awe. Maia is the new Benji-whisperer...

Boonie Peppers in the Suburbs...

Our boonie plants are as healthy as ever!