My name is Luther Lowry. I'm currently 32 years old, overweight and working myself to death. I'm broke, lonely and really have nothing in the future that I feel I can look forward to. Several years ago, I found myself married to a woman whom I loved dearly, yet I doubt ever felt the same. During the time we were together, I found myself unemployed for an extended period of time, eventually taking the first job I could find that would even hire me. That job barely paid a quarter of what I'd been making previously, but I loved the work I did. Unfortunately, I couldn't risk looking for something better as I didn't want take the chance of becoming unemployed again. I had a family to take care of now. Eventually, we decided it was better if we were apart, and a whole world of opportunity opened for me. No longer was I burdened with family. Almost immediately, I moved into a job that paid quite a bit more, but yet left me feeling unfufilled. On top of that, my newfound income was being squandered needlessly, and my debt was only growing larger and larger with each passing month. From time to time, I would work to pay off some debts, but those would be immediately replaced with new debts. It was a vicious circle that I found myself in, just trying to make myself happy in order to cope with the lonelieness I found myself in over the last few years.
That brings the story to today. I'm broke, in debt up to my eyeballs, overweight and alone in this world. What can I do about it?
When a computer starts having issues, you contact tech support. The first thing they'll always tell you to do is "Reboot". Rebooting a computer has a cleansing effect. It cleans out all of the items that might be sticking in memory and also cleans out some of the temp files that might be cluttering your hard drive. Most times, but not always, it will solve whatever might be ailing your PC. It's about time I did just this, but on a much larger scale. It's time to reboot my life. I actually started this journey back in July when I started my weight loss journey. That journey, Fat Guy on a Diet, showed me with persistence and dedication, I can truly make a difference and change things for the better. In the last month or so, other events in life have stressed me to the point where the diet didn't even matter to me. Once again, I found myself on the path of self-destruction. Recently, on a trip from New Orleans, I did some thinking and inner soul searching. I determined the only way I'm going to see change in my life is by proactively seeking and making change. No one is going to do it for me, and no one is just going to hand it to me. I've got to do it! I've got to make that choice. It's time to hit the big power button, and just reboot my life.
My plan is to work on three areas of my life concurrently: Physical Health, Finances, and Mental Health. Physical health will mean getting back on track with "Fat Guy on a Diet". I'll resume posting, and making progress with the goal of getting to 240 lbs by my 33rd birthday. Financially, I'm a complete mess. I'm going to actively work to start saving for a rainy day, cleaning up my bad credit, paying off my debt and working to stop living paycheck to paycheck. Finally, I'm going to work to reduce my levels of stress overall and make time for myself. I'll also get out in the world and become more active. That should fufill the 3rd part, mental health.
The challenge is doing all three of these concurrently. My financial goals will decrease the amount I can spend on a regular basis. Dieting can be expensive, and one of the ways I attempted to fight stress was buying new toys. I'm going to have to find ways to accomplish all of these goals, but on a much tighter budget than I've ever found myself facing previously. This is going to be the most difficult challenge I've ever pushed myself to face, but in the end, I'm going to be a much better person for it. Can I do it? Will I survive the Big Reboot? Keep an eye on this blog and watch as I progress over the next year! The challenge begins January1, 2009!
I can't promise everything will work, but this is a learning and growing experience more than anything.
