Princess Leia Wants To Have Her Star Wars Cake — And Eat It Too.

Fisher Before               Fisher After

As the rest of us struggle to pay our bills or attain a bit of recognition for our creative endeavors, let us ponder the exquisite specialness of Ms. Carrie Fisher.

When the lifelong wealthy person, substance abuser, and daughter of legendary movie star Debbie Reynolds was provided the incredibly fortuitous opportunity to reprise her one and only iconic movie role from four decades back, she had nothing but complaints and bitching concerning this veritable Gift From Heaven, and the world-wide attention and sizeable paycheck that came with it.

To play the role of the mature and powerful General Leia in the latest Star Wars saga, Fisher was asked — her word was “pressured” — to lose the flab — 35 pounds worth, and to tone up her muscles.

This of course irked the entitled Hollywood brat no end. Why can’t she remain her fat limping geriatric self and STILL play an ass-kicking General? — she asked with all the hubris characteristic of the wealthy overindulged. Never mind that male actors are required to go through a much more lengthy, challenging and demanding transformation to play the roles of superheroes, strippers and Spartans with nary a whimper about the "unfairness" of it all.

"Nothing changes,” she said in a snit in Good Housekeeping Magazine. “It’s an appearance-driven thing. I'm in a business where the only thing that matters is weight and appearance. That is so messed up. They might as well say 'Get younger,' because that's how easy it is."

Her well-publicized mental health issues and addiction problems aside, the elderly crybaby should have been down on her knees kissing the feet of those who made such a lucky break possible for her instead of whining about how hard it is for someone accustomed to having no boundaries whatsoever being assigned a few in order to take part in such a life-enriching project. 

She went on to say something quite jaw-dropping:

 “I have a harder time eating properly than I do exercising… and when I do lose the weight, I don't like that it makes me feel good about myself. It's not who I am.”

I had to go over that twice to make sure I had read it properly: “when I do lose the weight, I don't like that it makes me feel good about myself.”

Feeling good about herself is not who she is? Carrie Fisher really is from another planet.

Niagen / NA Supplements — The Jury’s Out.

A fascinating article in Scientific American provides a laymen’s rundown on the supplement-of-the-moment, NA. The makers claim miraculous results for older people, but few users agree experiencing similarly outstanding results. Reading the reviews for the various brand names on Amazon will leave you confused, as many people reporting positive results describe these in the most modest of terms, making me personally wonder if the Placebo Effect is in play here. However, a few of these Amazon reviewers are older males who go to the gym, and they report more energy and stamina, longer workout times, and quick recovery even after pushing beyond the normal limits of their workout routine.

I thought I might try it, expecting nothing, so as to report my opinion to you, but I am daunted by the $300 price tag for a 90 day supply. If I change my mind I will announce that here.

CVS has what initially appears the best pricing, but their capsule contains a much smaller dosage than other sellers, 75mg vs. 250mg, actually making the "discount" CVS version the most expensive on the market. Take a few minutes to read the Scientific American article here.

In the past I felt I was getting great results from the popular bodybuilder supplement NO2, but frankly at that time I was doing everything strictly correct - eating, sleeping, fantastic workouts, high protein intake, creatine supplementation. I was making good money, had few worries and was enjoying rewarding relationships both social and romantic. So considering this, with everything going my way, it is challenging to be able to claim that any one thing, such as a supplement, made a significantly positive difference.

I continue to believe it is the combination of as many positive things, especially optimum nutrition, sleeping and challenging frequent workouts, that make up 95% of what is required to get results. Face it: everyone wants a magic pill, but going by the reports of the 350+ Amazon reviews, this expensive supplement’s benefits remain elusive.

Obesity: The Achilles Heel Of Our First Defenders.

No, these are not people in costume.

A short time ago I was vacationing in Honolulu. For whatever reason there were a lot of military in Waikiki dressed in fatigues but obviously not on duty — they were having fun like any tourist. The shock for me was how obese and out of shape many of these military personnel, both male and female, were.

Watching news videos of cops in action reveals the same thing: grotesquely fat cops physically incapable of chasing suspects on foot giving up after running a few yards, and in some cases, resorting to shooting at them with guns instead.

It is twisted beyond all explanation that there is no physical fitness requirement for those who we the public employ and expect to act as first responders to public threats. The flowering of so-called political correctness and the internet screaming and wailing about so-called “fat shaming” are part and parcel, if not the very embodiment of this dangerous new policy of the lack of even the most basic physical fitness requirement for highly physical occupations.

As citizens and taxpayers we have every right to expect that these “elite” forces look the part and are physically capable of performing at a high level.