Tag Archive for tim berry

Buy Shares of Tim Berry

May 7, 2011 General, Interesting, Life No comments

Today is your lucky day!  You can buy shares of Tim Berry.  Not only that, you can let others buy shares of you.

Social Media ExchangeEmpire Avenue is a new Social Media Exchange site where you can buy and sell your “friends” for virtual currency.  Yes, it is a social investment game.

I am extremely interested in this concept and how it relates to human psychology.  There are 2 factors at play.  First is the greed factor of wanting to amass large wealth by investing strategically.  Although it is virtual currency, it still fills a desire that some people have, and the risk is minimal (unless you waste way too much time there or you start purchasing extra shares with real money).

Next is the desire to be “desirable” by others.  Will your value go up?  How high?  Are your friends and followers in your social network really that interested in you?  If so, will they invest in you?  Or who are the best bets for you to invest  in among your friends…

Anyway, it will be interesting to see how this all plays out.  I see two possibilities with this site:

  1. Bottle rocket: extremely fast growth, followed by even faster crash
  2. Exponential, viral growth that is sustained and allows it to become a dotcom success story over the next 5 years.

For the latter to occur, they will need to add some other features  in order to keep people interested.  It may not be “social” enough to have the “stick” factor that other social behemoths have.  There are chat boxes and communities, but only time will tell if these will become valuable or just spam rooms.

Eating Like a Champ

July 5, 2009 General, Health and Wellness 3 comments
Kung Pao Tofu

Kung Pao Tofu

Confession:  I love food and lots of it:)

Seven years ago, just before Ryder was born, I decided to quit racing triathlons, mountain bikes, and adventure races.  I finished strong with 6 age group wins in a 60 day stretch.  Then I quit cold turkey.

Not only did I quit racing, I pretty much quit exercising.  Despite this, I continued to consume about 6000 calories per day (needed when I was training regularly).  So the mathematics of weight began to take its toll on my health.

There were also some heavy stressors in my life at that time, primarily related to a dishonest employee who created a financial disaster that spiraled out of control over the next few years.  The stress took its toll too.  I eventually recovered, but not before it had contributed to a slowed metabolism and other not-so-desirable health effects.

A good friend, Dr. Mark Schnitzer, recommended that I read The China Study.  He and his family found it so compelling that they decided to become Vegan.  My wife and I read it (I admit I quickly skimmed it) about a year ago.  We realized the importance of changing our diets, but did not make the commitment at that time.  Most likely I was still in denial.

Having a long history of hyperlipidemia (really bad cholesterol), my risk for heart disease was significantly higher than the average person.  Since medical school, I had been able to control it by using natural remedies and food supplements.  However as part of the intense stress that began in 2002, I also went into a state of denial and quit taking these supplements.

Last October, we moved back to Colorado.  It was part of our grand plan for lifestyle change.  A few months back I hit a chronological milestone and finally decided to get a real physical exam and check-up.  As it turns out, I am really healthy except for my cholesterol panel (cough… and weight).

According to my Berkley lipid panel, I have every genetic marker for risk that you can have.  My bad cholesterol (LDL), triglycerides, and even my good cholesterol (HDL) were all abnormal as well.  I immediately visited my local health food store and purchased an arsenal of food supplements and vitamins that will help me fight the battle.

Once I got a clean bill of health from the Cardiologists who did my nuclear stress test and calcium score (spiral CT scan calcium study), I rewarded myself with a new road bike and designed a fitness plan to get back into shape.  The only thing missing was a rock solid dietary plan that would complement my exercise and life plan, while also supporting a healthier cholesterol profile.

The official start date of my vegetarian lifestyle was delayed because my parents were visiting and they love red meat (several times daily) and I wanted to leave my carnivorous ways in style.  Once they left town, I implemented a not-so-strict vegetarian diet.  The photo above was my first meal – Kung Pao Tofu from Pei Wei.  It was such a beautiful dish, I had to take a photo.

I will update you in 90 days so that we can explore how my lifestyle changes and strategic supplementation will affect my cholesterol panel and general health.

Your Favorite Vegetarian,

Tim Berry MD

It’s Good to Be Back

June 22, 2009 General, Interesting, Life 2 comments

hackerFor all of you loyal followers, you will be happy to know that I am back.  Unfortunately, all of my past posts will not be back until they have been thoroughly cleaned & scrubbed of any corrupt files.

The short version of the story is that a very bored hacker found his or her way onto my server and into my blog account over the weekend.  Obviously this was an amateur or else they wouldn’t be wasting time on my personal blog.  Anyway, it’s all small stuff and doesn’t affect my life in any way.

Catch up with you soon…