Not So Fat

A size two Jennifer Love Hewitt was photographed playing along a Hawaiian shore in a black bikini with her new fiance Ross McCall. The pictures began popping up on the Internet and soon the criticism began. The curvy 28 year old came to not only her defense but to girls and women all over.

“I’ve sat by in silence for a long time now about the way women’s bodies are constantly scrutinized. To set the record straight, I’m not upset for me, but for all the girls out there that are struggling with their body image," Hewitt posted on her website.
I completely agree with Hewitt. I've blogged on this subject before, and it gets to me every time. Why is America obsessed with scrutinizing women's bodies?

Stop America!


As Hewitt put it, "To all the girls with butts, boobs, hips and a waist put on a bikini — put it on and stay strong!”

For the Lobster Lovers

I love lobster. I love my money. Why pay 34 dollars for a pound and a half lobster when you can get it as cheap as 11.99?

Yes my friends, it's true. You don't have to break the bank to get your hands on a steamed sea-cockroach. As a lobster lover, I've done all the footwork necessary to let you in on the great deals.

1. Publix. For 11.99 you can get yourself a live Maine lobster. Yes, you have to steam it yourself, but if you plan on having quite a few friends over for dinner, it's a great idea. Much cheaper than going out to your local seafood restaurant where a bill can add up quickly.

2. Boynton Beach Ale House. On Monday and Wednesday nights, the Ale House offers a pound and a quarter lobster with any side for 14.99. Try the mash potatoes and gravy. Also, on Wednesday nights, ladies drink free!

3. Station House. Located on Lantana Rd., the Station House has two pound and quarter lobsters for 22.95 before 5 PM.

4. Lake Worth Rum Shack. On Tuesday nights, you can get a pound and a quarter lobster plus a side for.
Get a pitcher of beer to go with it, and you have yourself a meal.

5. Bizarre Avenue Cafe. A fancy place with inexpensive lobsters on Tuesday nights. For 19.99 you can get a pound and a quarter lobster plus a side and a salad. Upstairs only.

Monopoly Fans!

The classic game of Monopoly, created in 1935 by Charles Darrow, has been morphed into more than 100 different genres. As an avid player, also known as "the hat," I decided to do my research and seek out a "top five" list.

5. MAKE-YOUR-OWN-OPOLY: Construct a custom made board game by using just a pen and scissors or produce a production quality board game by using your PC and any simple color printer. Just think of the possibilities...

4. NINTENDO-OPOLY: Now you can buy, sell and trade your favorite Nintendo characters for a whole new game-playing experience.

3. NIGHT SKY MONOPOLY: Become an astronaut for an hour or two! Move around the game board as you purchase comets, planets, star clusters, nebulae and galaxies and build observatories.

2. GHETTO-OPOLY: Tasteless? Offensive? Maybe. That won't stop me from buying it. Instead of houses and hotels, ghettos and projects are built. The railroads are substituted by liquor stores, and the boardwalk becomes a strip club. I dib the piece of crack rock as my piece.

1. TRIOPOLY: Triopoly adds exciting new dimensions and game-playing strategies as players build financial empires across three different levels. You gotta see it to believe it! (Below)

Buckle up, it's the Law. Except...

Picture this:
You're taking a quick cruise down I-95, a little late for work but you're not sweating it just yet. All of a sudden you look in your rearview and see "the man" tailing you. Before you know it, those red and blue lights start dancing in unison with that ear-piercing siren. You're being pulled over. After a 45 minute stop, you find yourself with a speeding ticket along with a seatbelt violation. Oops.

But as you're pulling back onto the highway, a driver on a motorcycle breezes by you.

Question: Why are car drivers held responsible for wearing seatbelts while motorcycle drivers don't even need to wear a helmet, let alone a seatbelt. But yet it's legal?

As long as cars and motorcycles share the same roads, I believe the same laws should apply to every automobile driver. What exactly makes the difference? I decided to ask my father, Frank Kreidler, a lawyer for over 35 years. "It's just one of those things that can't be explained Kimmy, what can I say?"

If anyone knows the answer to this question, please don't leave me hanging. I'd like to know.

Bud Fans: Beware

Beer. Some people hate it, others love it. While beer in college is usually related to wild "frat parties" in copious amounts of irresponsible craziness, there are a select few college students who like to actually taste our beer, not inhale it.

For the adventurous beer drinkers like me, here's a few I highly recommend.

Caution: If you're strictly Bud or Miller, do not attempt to try these beers.

5. Craft beers are finding their way to major supermarkets, such as Publix and Winn Dixie. Flying Dog, which is being featured at Publix, features multiple variates ranging from
Porters to Ales. "Good Beer. No Shit." Try my favorite, "In-Heat-Wheat."

4. Eye of the Hawk. A great one for an afternoon tailgating. "The Harley Davidson of American beers" boasts the Mendocino Brewing Company. Rich body and deep flavor.

3. St. Pauli Girl. "With three special brews, there's a St. Pauli Girl for you!"An imported German beer. My favorite, St. Pauli Girl Special Dark, is smooth with a rich malty taste. (Be prepared with your date of birth to enter the web site- 21 and up only.)

2. Modelo. You Corona lovers have to try this one. Related in origin (soy de Mejico), Modelo is known in Mexico as the "elite of beers" (la crema de la cerveza). For extra umph, try Modelo Dark.

1. Val-Dieu Brown. A Belgian beer for those who love thick, dark beers. Almost a meal, the mouth is bombarded with coffee, mocha and chocolate tastes. At 8 percent alcohol volume, a few of these and you'll be set. You can find this gem at Beer World in Boca Raton.

Me and my number one (below).

Mother Nature Marks her Territory

Sophomore Carlos Matias carefully sits down on a thick sea wall behind his condo just north of Lantana beach.Strong ocean winds whip around the small 15-by-15 back porch as waves lap along the cracked white wall where the beach has disappeared (above).

"It's extremely unfortunate. The sea wall here at the Imperial House has sustained such major damage during recent storms that it just gave in," Matias explains. "And as a result of the collapsing wall, my backyard itself has sunken three feet. It can be scary at times."

Matias is seeking his degree at Florida Atlantic University through the Environmental Sciences certificate program. "My passion is in environmental health. It's a hands on issue, and the program here at FAU allows students to research and explore environmental topics through a broadly-based interdisciplinary program."

Matias walks barefoot through the sinking grass to his concrete patio, where roommate Kristine McKean looks at old photos of the Imperial House.

Leafing through the tattered brown album McKean says, "my grandfather and grandmother purchased this condo in the 1960s. I love living on the beach, but the state and county need to agree on a permanent solution to this erosion. It's a serious matter that has plagued this area for years."

Such solutions are what Matias wants to per sue after graduation. "I basically want to mediate the fight between Mother Nature and human life.Whether its erosion or pollution, I would enjoy a career that addresses these problems," says Matias.

Along Lantana Beach, the ocean has almost swallowed all of a dune system that Palm Beach County constructed to shield the condos from the pounding surf. In June, 6,750 cubic yards of sand was placed from the south end of the Lantana municipal beach to the Horizon East condo near the northern limit of South Palm Beach. Now, 96 to 97 percent of the project had been washed out.

"When working with or in a marine environment your work conditions and tasks vary from working in the marine environment itself, gathering information and or specimens to working in a laboratory studying microorganisms under a microscope. In this profession, it is not uncommon to spend weeks aboard are search vessel working around the clock," Matias explains.

"It's a broad line of work. Close friends of mine that have already graduated have found successful careers in environmental conservation, fisheries protection, water management and environmental consultancies," says Matias.

Becoming a marine biologist doesn't happen overnight. "It takes years of hard studying, a soul for the job and dedication," advises Matias.

And as for the fractured sea wall, Matias point out, "For the time-being, the county has decided to ask the state Department of Environmental Protection for permission to rebuild the dune system this winter."

Beach erosion is an endless battle between humans and Mother Nature. As humans we create our environment and expect it to be as is— forever. But this is not so and we need to realize it. The truth is erosion will torment us for as long as human kind roams this planet and we will eventually have to accept it.

Our beaches are constantly eroding every day, slowly and steadily. Sometimes even right before our eyes. People panic and expect some sort of solution to fix or prevent the matter. The fact of the matter is there is no real permanent solution to stop or fix this. A sea wall can be put up; sand can be pumped from out of state to replace a beach that was once there; jetties and rocks can be placed to divert current and water flow in an area to help slow the erosion process, but all in all it is something that we just need to deal with and most of all-understand. In my opinion, we are in the hands of Mother Nature and we need to play her game not ours.

Questions for the President

In high school, we were told to be quiet, listen, believe everything and question nothing.
In college, we are taught to speak out, think for ourselves, trust nothing and question everything.

My mind has never been able to fully wrap around the concept of "pro-life" versus "pro-choice." Is the term "pro-life" a term coined by a right-wing conservative that had hopes of making "pro-choice" believers look as if they are "pro-death?" Who knows.

But I do have some serious questions for the man in the White House.

In 2003 you signed the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 (shown below). Did you not realize the Act contained no exception to protect the mother's health? Also, this picture worries me. A group of men, laughing and patting each other on the back-- not a woman to be seen.

What's the deal with the anti-abortionists bombing abortion clinics? Couldn't that be translated to-- you should have been aborted x-number of years ago?

But here's a tough one for our president. You are pro-life when it comes to abortion, even revoking funds for stem-cell research due to its "moral issues." Yet, you support the death penalty. In your five years of governor of Texas, the state executed 131 prisoners-- far more than any other state. It doesn't add up. How can this be explained?

Abortion was made legal for a reason, we all know the story behind Roe vs. Wade. If it were ever overturned, it would only mean that those seeking abortion would end up in clinics that aren't inspected by health services, with "doctor's" that don't even need degrees. Thus only making matters worse, and endangering the lives of women who simply cannot have or care for a child for whatever reason.